These Are Lestrange Times
by lestrangexoxo
Summary: Life and times of Bellatrix Black in her sixth year of Hogwarts. Featuring romances with the usual suspects... and someone who never thought he'd even cross her path, let alone start one with her. This is Bellatrix's journey to who she later becomes.
1. The 'Noble' House of Black

The Black house never really seemed welcoming to some people, with its stone features and the heads of deceased house-elves on the wall. But to Bellatrix, this really was home. She sat upstairs in her bedroom, reading a letter from a friend. She liked getting letters, yes, but she hated it when people she didn't want to speak to wouldn't back down and stop writing to her. Didn't they get the message? She didn't want to have to tell them bluntly _I don't want to speak to you_. But there just didn't seem to be any other way to do the job.

Her sisters were probably doing something else downstairs. Narcissa was most likely to have been doing her hair or applying yet more needless make-up, either way she'd be stood in front of a mirror staring at herself in adoration. Andromeda on the other hand would probably have been reading a book, she was into history and astronomy. Bellatrix did get on with her sisters, most of the time. Although, it had to be said that she much preferred the company of her youngest sister, Narcissa, to Andromeda. She couldn't actually find a specific reason why she got on with Narcissa better, they just seemed to have more in common.

The door creaked open, and Narcissa poked her head around the door. Bellatrix glanced up at her and went back to reading as her sister let herself inside.

'What are you reading, Bella?' She asked casually, perching herself on Bella's bed.

'Oh, just a few letters. Nothing important.' Bella sighed, throwing the letter across her messy bedroom.

'Anything from Roddy?' Narcissa questioned. Roddy was Bella's boyfriend… or at least was.

'Nope. But why should there be? He's not my boyfriend anymore.' Bella told her sister strongly.

'Oh,' Narcissa seemed slightly shocked to hear this. 'I thought you were in love with him? You seemed really into him. Who finished who?'

'Always one for the gossip, aren't you, Nancy?' Bella smiled at her. She was only one who called her Nancy, most people abbreviated her name to Cissy.

Narcissa shrugged and smiled back. 'You could say that.'

'Well, if you must know. I finished him.'

'But why? He seemed really nice…'

'Exactly,' Bella told her. 'he was really nice, but I wasn't looking for that, you know? He's just… tame.'

Narcissa laughed. 'I can understand why you didn't stick with him then, you're hardly tame, are you?' She grinned at her sister.

'Not really, no,' Bella smirked. 'what about you? Any letters worth reading?'

Narcissa shook her head. 'No. Got a fair few, but nothing that I would miss.'

'And how many from boys? Five? Ten?'

'Twelve, actually.' Narcissa said proudly. She did like to impress the boys. Bella rolled her eyes.

'It's not good for you, you know. You don't have to be the one all the lads like,' She paused and looked back at her sister. 'but was there anything from that guy you like?'

'Um… depends who you mean,' Narcissa replied, genuinely confused by this question.

'The one you _actually_ like. Not the ones you might consider going out with.'

'Oh. Then no. I wanted Lucius to write, and I thought he would, but he didn't,' She said sadly. But she picked herself up quickly. 'We're going out tonight, Bella.'

''We' as in me and you or 'we' as in a family thing?'

'Family.'

'Ah, crap.'

'Yeah well, it gets worse. We're going to Aunt Walburga's.'

'Oh for God's sake. This family is ridiculous, Nancy, I'll tell you that now.' Bella moaned, getting up off the floor and opening her wardrobe doors.

'You don't have to dress up, Bella. It's only a social call.' Narcissa said with a tone of shock.

'I know… I wanna find my Quidditch hoodie.'

'Why?'

'Because I just really feel like pissing off Sirius.' Bella mused, finding her hoodie and shutting the wardrobe doors. Narcissa smiled at her as she got out a green Slytherin hoodie.

'If you say so, Bella. But Annie's not going to be happy about that, you know how she reacted when you ripped that poster in his room.' Narcissa reminded her. Last time they were at their cousin's house, Bella tore up one of the posters in Sirius' room. Sirius put up posters of Muggle girls and motorbikes along with Gryffindor banners, just to annoy his family. Bella got so annoyed with him for it that she ripped up a poster of a Muggle girl in a bikini, she told him that not only was it wrong to keep a picture of a Muggle, but that it was degrading to women as well. Although the last part was more of an afterthought, for something else to insult her cousin with.

'Well Annie can go and stick up for poor little Sirius if she likes, but I won't be joining her. Will you?' Bella turned to her sister.

'No,' Narcissa laughed coldly. 'obviously not! Although… his friend at school is quite fit…'

'Which one?'

'James something? Don't really know his name. He's hot.' Narcissa grinned. Bella shook her head in disappointment.

'You didn't mean James Potter by any chance, did you? Because if you did, then I think you need to find yourself some glasses, because he is _not_ fit.' Bella told her sister, a smirk on her face. Narcissa shrugged.

'It's not as if I'd ever date him or anything, but I'm just saying that I don't mind looking at him.'

Bella couldn't stop herself laughing. 'Oh, God, Nancy. Where would the world be with you?'

'The lads would all be extremely sad in a world without me, Bella. I mean, what would they look at?'

'You mean what would they jack off while thinking about?'

'Don't be disgusting, Bella!'

'You know it happens.'

Narcissa shrugged. 'Fair enough.'

Bella found her sister, Annie, downstairs reading a book, as she presumed she would be. Annie looked up at her sister, smiled briefly and went back to her book.

'We're going to Aunt Walburga's tonight, Annie.' Bella said flatly.

'I know,' Annie replied, not looking up from her book. 'Mum said we were.'

'So you can go and have a nice little chat with Sirius, eh?' Bella teased, picking up the daily paper from the table and scanning over the front page.

'Leave it out, Bella. He's your cousin, too.' Annie told her calmly, her eyes still not leaving the page.

'Wish he wasn't. He sure doesn't fit it with this family.' Bella said, jumping up onto the table and crossing her legs.

'Don't be so cruel, Bella. Just because he's different.' Annie was still keeping a calm tone. Bella wanted to wind her up, but nothing seemed to be working.

'So, you're okay with hanging out with Muggles and mud-bloods then?' Bella asked her in a casual tone.

Annie slammed the book shut and placed it down in the table. 'What do you want, Bella? I'm not in the mood to argue with you.'

'Aw, come on. Humour me.'

'No,' Annie hissed. 'why can't you just be nice to Sirius for a change? What did he do to _you_? Who cares what he likes and doesn't like, and whether he's different!'

'What did he do to me? He hexed my boyfriend last year!'

'Roddy started it! I was there!'

'He did not! He yelled at him and Sirius hexed him, it's not the same thing!'

'I hope you girls aren't fighting again.' A cool voice said from the doorway. Both girls turned to stare at them. Druella, their mother, stood in the doorway, her blonde hair tied up in a tight bun.

'Nope,' Bella replied smoothly, dropping down from the table. 'I was just going to ask when we were leaving.'

'Whenever you're ready. Where's Narcissa?'

'Upstairs probably.' Bella replied, slipping past her mum in the doorway.

'Could you go and get her?'

'Yeah!' Bella called back, jogging up the stairs.

She opened the door to her sister's bedroom. Narcissa was sitting by her window, it was open and a draft was circulating its way around the room.

'What are you doing, Nancy?' Bella called to her, making her way over to her sister.

Narcissa spun around, a grin on her face. 'He wrote to me! I didn't think he would, but he did!' She squeaked, genuinely excited about this.

'Oh… that's good, right? I mean, what guy's not interested in you, Nancy? So, what did he have to say?' Bella questioned her, sitting down next to her.

'Not a lot really, just stuff about what he's done over the holidays, nothing that interesting. However, he said that he's really looking forward to going back to school so he can see me again, because he's realised that he misses me when I'm not around!' Narcissa beamed at her sister, clearly very impressed with herself.

'Very nice,' Bella grinned back at Narcissa. 'he clearly likes you, Nancy. I reckon you'll be going out by… first weekend back at school, second by the latest,' Bella smiled at her. Narcissa smiled back and nodded.

'Hope so.'

'Anyway, come on, mum says we've gotta go now,'


	2. Cold Enjoyment

Bella's aunt's house looked the same as it always did. Kind of shabby, but at the same time maintaining an elegant standard of class. She couldn't explain it, but that was the way it always had been. There was a certain routine whenever they paid them a visit; the adults would sit and drink wine in the lounge, while the kids would sit in the drawing room. Bella hated that, it made her feel so restricted, she wasn't a kid anymore; she was fifteen, nearly sixteen! And then there was Sirius. He drove her insane! Regulus was her other cousin, Sirius' brother, and she could tolerate him. However, when she walked into the drawing room today, she didn't just see her cousins, she saw another face baring a familiar smirk.

'James Potter.' It wasn't a greeting, more of a verbal acknowledgement.

'Bellatrix Black.' James Potter smirked, his eyes unable to avoid looking her up and down. She rolled her eyes and sat down at the table at the back of the room, closely followed by Narcissa. Annie chose to sit on the floor with Sirius and his friend. Regulus joined the girls at the table, as a good excuse to leave his brother in search of better company.

'Didn't realise James Potter would be here…' Narcissa muttered to her sister, her eyes still on James Potter.

'Oh please,' Bella rolled her eyes. 'Nancy you have _got_ to up your taste.'

'Come on, _him_? Are you joking?' Regulus laughed, not even bothering to keep his voice quiet. James momentarily turned around to them, but his eyes fell on Bella, not her sister or her cousin. His look was gone only moments after he cast it, leaving Bella wondering what it was she'd just seen.

'Bella?'

'What?' She snapped back, as her sister smirked at her.

Narcissa shook her head and gave her sister a familiar smile. 'Nothing,' She turned back to Regulus. 'How often is he here?'

He shrugged. 'Too often. Mum doesn't like him, but she said something about his dad coming from a "respectable family". No idea what she was talking about. His mother's a mudblood for God's sake.' He glared across the room with distaste in his eyes. Bellatrix smiled back at him in mild agreement. She wanted James Potter to turn around and say something about his family, defend them. He did no such thing. He muttered something to Sirius, and Annie cast an angry glance back at her sisters and cousin. Bella simply grinned back at her.

Bella decided to have some fun for a while, and jumped up from her seat. Much to the dislike of Annie, she sat on the floor with Sirius, James and Annie.

'Alright, boys?' She asked them, tossing her hair behind her.

'What do you want?' Sirius asked her bluntly. She laughed slightly coldly and didn't reply. Annie looked like she was so embarrassed she could burst into tears at any minute.

'He's too old for you, Annie.' Bella told her. Her sister blushed a bright shade of pink and quickly left the room, muttering something about the bathroom.

'That was mean.' Sirius growled at her. She rolled her eyes.

'True though. She's fourteen.'

'And?' James joined the conversation, a cheeky expression on his face. 'That's about two years…'

Bella stared at him. 'Two years too many.'

James laughed at her, not coldly, but with a cool edge. Bella watched him, feeling increasingly angry with him, but she'd keep it to herself – for now.

'As if you'd get with a Slytherin, Potter.' Bella spat back at him.

He shrugged and pretended to contemplate this for a moment. 'Can't complain about what you've never had.'

'You make me sick, Potter. Physically sick.'

'So does the sight of you and that slime at school. Honestly, it's everywhere I look!' James retorted, still grinning at her.

'If you're talking about Roddy, then you won't have to put up with that for much longer. We're not together anymore, thank you very much.'

'Realised he'd got more than he could handle?' Sirius interjected the conversation. He meant it as an offence, but Bella simply smiled back.

'Yeah,' She agreed. 'I got bored.' She threw a glance at James before letting her eyes sweep around the room. Her sister and Regulus were watching the conversation like it was the most controversial thing for a long time. This happened all the time! Not with James Potter though… usually just Sirius.

'And you, Potter? Girlfriend?'

'Is that an offer?' He said quietly with a smirk. Sirius couldn't quite decided whether to laugh or quickly change the subject, so ended up displaying more of a grimace.

'In your dreams,' Bella replied in a whisper. 'I'd get _very_ bored of you.'

'I don't think so.'

'What's that supposed to mean?'

James looked her in the eyes. 'Means you'll never know.' He shook his messy hair out of his eyes and leaned back again. Bella didn't speak for a while, she was busy thinking about things. She wasn't quite sure what, but she was thinking about it. The conversation might have carried on without her, but she wasn't sure. She zoned back in just as James declared he was leaving.

'So, I'll see you back at school, Sirius,' he told his friend in the doorway of the drawing room. He shot a glance back at Bella, who met his gaze. He winked at her. She stared back. 'Bellatrix Black.'

'James Potter.' She replied similarly. He left the room without another word or glance. Sirius shut the door and turned on his cousin.

'What the hell was that about?' He asked her with a force behind his voice. He remained stood up, towering over her. She smirked and stood up to try and match his height. She almost did, but she wasn't quite tall enough, but it didn't matter, her attitude added a few inches to her height.

'Ask Potter. He started it.' She replied smoothly. Sirius was still glaring daggers at her.

'You best keep away from him Bella. I don't want you shitting up my social life. I get enough stick for you as it is.'

She couldn't stop herself laughing at that, and she could hear her cousin and sister sniggering in the background.

'_You_ get stick for me? Hell, clearly you've not heard some of the things said to us about you! Honestly, you're an embarrassment to everyone! Running around with your mudblood friends, you blood traitor!'

Sirius snapped. He got his wand out and aimed it at his cousin.

'You'll regret that.' She said simply, taking her time in taking out her own. 'I could blow you to kingdom come, Sirius. I think you know that.'

'Bring it,' He paused and looked her in the eyes. 'bitch.'

'Come on, don't do this…' Regulus tried to break it up before it had a chance to start. Narcissa held her arm out to stop him.

'Nah, it's just getting interesting.' She pushed him back into his seat.

Bella laughed coldly, unable to stop herself as she watched her cousin pretending to be tough with her.

'Are you kidding? You honestly think you can take me?' Bellatrix asked her cousin, a menacing smirk appearing on her lips.

'No,' Sirius replied coolly. 'I know I can.'

Bellatrix didn't bother to stop herself laughing at her cousin's bravery… or foolishness. Her laughter stopped abruptly, and gave her a microsecond to aim her wand and say; 'Everte Statum.' She then reserved a simple smile as she watched her cousin hurtle across the room and send him smacking into the wall.

'Shit, Bella, was that really necessary?' Regulus exclaimed, leaping up from his chair once more.

'It was provoked.' Bella shrugged, throwing a cheeky grin in her sister's direction. Narcissa was only too happy to return it.

Sirius pulled himself off the floor, shrinking away from his brother's offer of help and marched back up to his cousin. He looked her in the eyes.

'James?' He whispered to her. 'Don't think he'd go for you if you were the last girl on this Earth… or the next one.'

Bellatrix lost control of what happened next. She felt a sudden and impulsive surge of anger rush through her, boiling her blood on its way. She felt a vibration from under the floor, and the sudden cracking of glass. She glanced towards the windows, her heart beating faster than it ever had before, as she watched the windows shatter and burst in on themselves. She felt scared, but at the same time she felt more alive than ever. She smiled but didn't realise it. Even though she hadn't cast a spell, she knew she was responsible for what had happened, she could just feel it.

'What did you do?' Sirius yelled at her. 'Are you insane?'

Regulus already had his wand out, muttering incantations to himself as he fixed the windows.

Narcissa was out of her seat by now, slightly shaky on her feet, and staring at her sister with confusion and horror. She grabbed her sister's wrist.

'Let's go.' She told her forcefully, and lightly dragged her from the room. As soon as the drawing room door shut, Narcissa began addressing her sister.

'What the hell was that, Bella?'

'I don't know…'

'You're smiling! Why are you smiling?'

'What?' Bellatrix suddenly began thinking about what she was doing. She was smiling. Why was she smiling? She quickly wiped away her grin and looked back at her sister.

'You scared me,' Narcissa told her. 'You _really_ scared me. Please don't ever do that again.' She pleaded with her sister, her eyes expressing her genuine fear.

'I can't help it, Nancy. I didn't do it on purpose… Sirius spoke to me and I just felt so… so angry.'

Narcissa pulled her sister into a hug. 'Just don't let it happen again.' She whispered.

'I'll try.' Bellatrix replied, but she knew that deep down, she'd been enjoying every second of it.


	3. Party

Two weeks until the Hogwarts term was due to start again. Bellatrix sat starring at a piece of parchment in front of her. She was clutching an invitation to Will Skeeter's party. He wasn't such a friend as an acquaintance, but he seemed to know just about everyone. People always had a lot to say about Will's parties. He was in Ravenclaw, and naturally, his grades were phenomenal, he was a Quidditch wiz, all the girls loved him and he had _a lot_ of friends. She probably wouldn't have decided to go, because Will became quite good friends with Remus Lupin, and his whole crowd, the year before. However, Lucy Rosier said she really wanted to go, and Bellatrix would always agree to support her best friend, and besides, she didn't have to even see Lupin or his friends. Although, she couldn't hide the fact from herself, that she secretly hoped she might see James Potter.

The night of the party, Bellatrix had put on a little black dress, and tied her hair up, some of the curls slipping from the grip and back onto her shoulders. But it still looked fine. She fixed her make-up and went downstairs, where her youngest sister was waiting for her.

'And you're waiting for what exactly?' Bellatrix asked her, taking the last few steps and joining her in the hallway.

'You,' She smiled sweetly at her. 'who's party are you going to?'

'No, you're not coming.'

'Hey! I didn't ask to come!' Narcissa laughed. Bellatrix knew she would have asked, though.

'It's Will Skeeter's party.' She replied eventually.

Narcissa nodded in approval. 'Will's nice.'

'You don't know him!'

'Yeah I do!' She tilted her head. 'Well, I've seen him on the Quidditch pitch. He seems… nice.'

Bellatrix smirked at her. 'You mean he _looks_ nice?'

'Hmm… yes.' Narcissa grinned at her sister.

'You're one of a kind, Nancy. You know that, right?'

'Oh yes.' Narcissa smiled, walking past her sister and up the stairs. Bella watched her go and shook her head. Her little sister was certainly different. She could never quite understand how all three of them were so different. Bella was the eldest, and she really ought to set a good example – she didn't. But then again, she didn't try. Andromeda was nothing like her though, so clearly she was taking no notice of the example being set. Annie liked books… and Gryffindors. She got along with her cousin, Sirius, something which neither of her sisters had managed, or wanted, to do. Then there was Narcissa. She was the youngest, but had probably had more boyfriends than either of her sisters. But that was her nature, she just loved make-up, boys and more make-up and boys.

Bella made her way to the living room, with nothing better to do while she decided whether she was going to turn up on time to Will's party. Annie was perched on the sofa, reading yet another book. She glanced up, and seeing it was Bella, glared at her.

'I do love it when people look at me like I'm the devil, y'know. So you can stop that right now.' Bellatrix told her sister with a sarcastic twinge in her voice. Annie rolled her eyes.

'You ought to get used to it. After all, that's how everyone'll be looking at you before long.' Annie replied calmly, only spending a few seconds with her eyes off the pages of her book.

'Let me tell you something,' Bellatrix said in the same calm tone. All of a sudden, she snatched the book, slammed it shut and dropped it onto the table, safely out of reach of her sister.

'That wasn't nice.' Annie said simply.

'Listen,' Bella said menacingly. 'you might think you're the _golden Slytherin_ or the lion in silver and green, or whatever. But you're not. You're in Slytherin; it's in your blood,' She looked her directly in the eyes. 'and you'll have to square with that someday, whether you like it or not.'

'I don't think so,' Andromeda answered in a whisper, leaning forwards to meet her sister's cold gaze. 'I think that when all this boils out of control-'

'When _what_ boils out of control?'

'Slytherin house, rivalry, segregation, cruelty, blood status…' Annie listed quickly, before switching her tone back to her meaningful voice. 'When all that boils over, and people have been getting hurt for years, I'm going to be the one clearing up the mess. I'll be the one who's separated from this shipwreck of a family, and I'll be the one caring for loved ones, because everyone else is _dead_.' Bellatrix remained silent, thoroughly shocked by what her sister was saying to her. 'And d'you know who'll be responsible for it? _You_.'

Without another word, Bella stood up and left the room, shutting the door with a _bang_. She didn't want to be upset by what Andromeda had just said to her, but she was. Only a little bit. The thing was, out of all the things she said, the one that actually hurt was her implying that Bella would turn on her own sister. She'd never do that. She stared at herself in the mirror.

'Or would I?' She whispered to herself. While her sister was like that, giving her attitude, she'd have completely flipped out of her if she'd have stayed long enough. She left the room to remove temptation from her path, rather than for dramatic effect.

Bella saw the clock behind her through the mirror. She'd probably better get going. She didn't want to stay around in this house any longer, but she knew she'd have to wait for Lucy and her brother to get there before she could go anyway at all. She wasn't allowed to apparate yet, neither was Lucy, but her older brother, Evan, was allowed. And he would usually take them anywhere they wanted to go. She would have persuaded Lucy to hang around for a while if she didn't feel like arriving on time, but she was more than happy to go early if it meant leaving the house for a while.

There was a snap from somewhere outside, and Bella had opened the front door before Lucy even had a chance to knock. Lucy smiled at her, and flicked her blonde hair over her shoulder. Bella couldn't help but smirk when she saw what Lucy was wearing. She had on a short, low cut green dress. Evan, on the other hand, looked like he couldn't care less, but he was meant to be friends with Will, and couldn't even be bothered to make an effort. He appeared tired though, as he threw a weak smile in Bella's direction. She smiled back.

Turning around briefly, Bella shouted, 'I'm going now, mum. I'll be back… er… later.' And stepped out of the doorway.

'Eager to go, Bella? Thought you had better taste than my little sister.' Evan smirked at her as she shut the door behind her.

She shook her head. 'It's not that. I fell out with my sister, that's all. Just wanted to get out of the house for a while.'

Evan nodded but didn't appear to have the effort left to pretend he understood. He held his arms out to the girls without a word. Bella glanced at Lucy, who simply shrugged. They each linked his arms, and left Bella's street.

They all appeared in an empty cobbled street, where all the street lights had been extinguished.

'Looks like Will actually thought ahead for once,' Evan muttered, glancing up at the black lights above them. 'actually prepared for people to come to his party.' He shook his head as though this were surprising. Lucy, on the other hand, probably wouldn't have cared less if they'd have had spotlights on them. She was desperately trying to hide her excitement. Bella rolled her eyes. She wouldn't have really minded if she wasn't even invited to Will's party, whereas it seemed that Lucy would have given her left arm to be there. She immediately began making her way down the street, with Bella and Evan casually following behind her.

'So what's up with you?' Bella asked him. 'You don't look good.'

'Well thanks,' Evan said dryly, but then a smile appeared. 'it doesn't matter, Bella. I'll be fine once we get back to school.'

Bella nodded back and didn't press the matter any further. They got to the steps of Will's house, where Lucy suddenly lost every ounce of confidence she previously had. She turned back to her brother, wide-eyed.

'You go first.'

Evan rolled his eyes and pushed past Lucy, to knock on the door. He just had time to throw a look back at her before Will Skeeter opened the door. He was tall and blond, wearing a black shirt, the first three buttons undone, and black jeans. He grinned at Evan, who didn't return it as willingly.

'Alright, Evan?' Will beamed at him, standing aside to let him inside. His eyes then turned to Lucy and Bella. 'Hey, girls.' He eyed them both up and down before Bella had enough and stormed ahead of Lucy, who trotted behind her, desperate not to be left on her own. Will smiled to himself and shut the door again.

The kitchen was near enough empty. Completely spotless, but almost empty. Lucy was pacing the marble floor, rambling things to herself about things Will had said and not said to her. Bella, meanwhile, was perched on the black kitchen units, pretending to listen to her. Bella's eyes began wandering around the room. She looked out of the window into the garden, where not many people were gathered. She did notice one person in particular though. She jumped down from the units, her heels clattering as she did so.

'Come on, we're going into the garden.' Bella grabbed Lucy's wrist.

'Yeah, I do need a bit of air. And see if Lucas has got any fags, would you?'

Bella ignored her comment until they were outside. Luckily, the very person Lucy was looking for was right outside, sitting alone on a bench swing.

'Lucas is there,' Bella told her. 'Go see what he's got. Kiss up to him and he won't charge, y'know.' Bella told her with a cheeky grin.

'But you always get the stuff, Bell…' Lucy whispered nervously.

Bella shook her head and brushed her curly hair off her shoulder. 'You can do it, Lucy. You kind of know Lucas, anyway.'

'Yeah… guess you're right…' Lucy forced a smile as Bella pushed her in Lucas' direction. She continued after that and sat down on the swing next to him. Bella nodded to herself, glad her plan was working. She then set her eyes back onto the person who'd drawn her outside in the first place.

James Potter was casually leaning against the garden fence, evidently telling some sort of joke, as all his friends started to laugh. He was clutching a beer bottle in one hand, as were all of his friends – apart from Remus Lupin. Bella took a deep breath and made her way over.

Sirius spotted her first, and alerted his friends. Lupin didn't seem all that bothered, after all, Bella had never really had much of a vendetta against him. Peter Pettigrew on the other hand, he looked as if he was going to either pass out or run away at any moment, glancing over his shoulder and seemingly trying to work out an exit. James was calm as ever, greeting her with his famous cheeky smile.

'Alright, boys?' Bella said, as she reached them and stood next to James.

'Yeah – until you got here! What the hell are you doing?' Sirius asked her heatedly, but trying to keep his voice quiet, so as not to attract attention.

'Just saying hello, honestly, anyone would think I embarrass you.' Bella grinned menacingly at him. Pettigrew made a whimpering noise.

'What's got into you, Wormtail?' James asked him, raising an eyebrow.

'N-nothing,' He replied quietly, still repeatedly glancing at Bella.

James suddenly laughed, quite coldly. 'Anyone would think you were scared of her!'

Bella stepped back into conversation. 'And why shouldn't he be?' James turned back to her, and leaned closer.

'Because you're harmless.'

'Am I?'

James' eyes passed her over.

'Anyone would think _you'd_ want to find out.' She continued. James didn't blush or seem at all thrown off by this. He simply smirked and turned back to his friends. Sirius was fuming, and it seemed as though he might explode at any moment.

'Cool off, Sirius.' Bella said with a bored tone. 'I am family, after all.'

Sirius didn't reply, but said to his friends. 'I'm going inside. If you don't wanna be thrown into or over that fence in the next half an hour, by _her_, then come with me.'

It was not surprising to Bella when Pettigrew almost sprinted after Sirius into the house. Lupin looked calm, as he had been the entire time, he was watching James, before he finally spoke.

'Although I'd love to stay and chat,' He began. 'I probably shouldn't be here.'

'What are you talking about, Remus?' James asked him, even though the smile on his face told his friend everything.

'Apologies, Bellatrix,' Lupin continued. 'James, maybe we'll see you later.' He nodded politely, then followed his friends back into the house.

'Well that was different.' Bella sighed. 'What's wrong with Lupin?'

James shrugged and took a sip of his drink. 'Dunno. D'you like him?'

'He seems okay,' Bella said slowly. 'Why?'

James grinned at her. 'Because you seem to hate all of my other friends.' Bella laughed, she couldn't help it.

'Yeah well. It does come with the territory, Potter. I can't be Slytherin and get on with Gryffindors, can I?'

James smirked. 'Then why are you still talking to me?' He leant slightly closer. She smiled at him.

'Not really sure,' She answered honestly. 'but if you want me to go…?'

'That won't be necessary,' James smirked, leaning back against the fence once more. 'besides – if you left I'd just be standing by myself like a loner.'

Bella shrugged. 'Not my problem.'

'And yet you're still here.'

'I'll go…' She turned around, about to walk away. She would have come straight back after a few steps, but what she expected to happen did. James grabbed her hand and gently pulled her back around.

'No, no, you stay put,' He reached behind him onto the table and handed her a beer bottle. She stared at him.

'And you give me this?' She glanced from the bottle to James. 'Something tells me you don't have many drinks with girls.'

James laughed. 'I've had more than my fair share, Black. But I know you'd probably rather drink that.' Bella thought about it for a moment, then gave up and nodded. He was right.

'You're right.' She said eventually, taking a sip.

'Thought so,' James grinned at her. 'I can read people fairly well.'

Bella smirked. She didn't doubt that he could read people well, but she did doubt that he paid an awful lot of attention to what he read most of the time. She knew that James and his friends, including Bella's cousin, did a remarkable amount of prank-pulling – a lot of which was played on a boy named Severus from Bella's house, Slytherin. It was pranks in her eyes, but a lot of other people called it bullying.

'And you can't _read_ it when Snape's crying for you to stop teasing him?' Bella probed, her dark eyes glittering.

'If I didn't know you better, I'd say you felt sorry for him.'

Bella couldn't stop herself laughing coldly. 'Not a chance, Potter. He's a foul boy, and I think it's funny when people pick on him. Call me sadistic, but I think the majority of the school would agree with me.' She shrugged, suddenly a little defensive after James' last sentence.

'But not Lily Evans,' James added. Bella stared at him for a moment, trying to remember exactly who Lily Evans was. The sickle dropped after a moment.

'No,' Bella agreed with him. 'she doesn't, does she? I see them talking all the time, outside our common room. Can't see why they ought to be friends… or _whatever_ it is.'

James bit his lip. He didn't want to laugh, he was meant to be friends with Lily. But Bellatrix just had a way with words that made him want to laugh. She was so sarcastic, but in a way that didn't seem too harsh.

'But we're friends, though,' He said, the sparkle in his eyes glimmering brighter. Bella stared back at him, a confused expression on her face. 'aren't we?'

Bella was about to reply when she heard her name being called from across the garden. Lucy was shouting after her, Lucas now having leapt up from the swinging bench. Bella could tell from where she was standing that he'd done something to upset her. She turned back to James, a grin on her face. She leant slightly closer to him and whispered.

'Not sure you wanna be friends with someone like me, James Potter,' She paused. 'I might be a bad influence.'

She strode away from him, her hair flying behind her as she approached her friend.

'What did he do?' She asked in a bored tone. Lucy's expression was thoroughly stunned at what had just happened. She was glaring at Lucas, as if he'd just tried to kill her.

'_Lucas_,' She began. 'thought he'd be smart and try and give me dodgy stuff,' Lucy took a deep breath. 'and then try and come onto me!'

'You seem fine to me.' Bella observed out loud.

Lucy sighed and shook her head. 'I'm too smart for him, obviously! I knew what he was doing, and I thought maybe I'd play along a bit… but then he was just… eugh!'

Bella nodded. Had Lucas not have been a little bit high, he would have seen what Bella was doing before she did it. He'd been on the receiving end so many times. Bella drew her wand from a seemingly hidden place in her dress, and pointed it straight at Lucas.

'Impedimenta!' She shouted out, causing the remaining people in the garden to turn around and watch the action. James continued to observe, a smile slipping onto his lips.

Lucas tripped himself up under the effect of the spell, and fell to the ground. Enough time for Bellatrix to find her next spell to inflict.

'_Incarcerous._' She didn't say it loudly – she didn't have to, it was so quiet. Ropes quickly descended from nowhere and began to bind themselves around Lucas. He instantly began squirming on the floor, rolling around trying to rip them from him, and they only became tighter. Bella glanced at Lucy, who seemed quite satisfied with this result. She grinned at her friend. Bella turned her attention back to Lucas, she didn't really want to hurt him too much, she didn't want to get herself into trouble. She really couldn't be bothered with that. She released the spell, finally.

Lucas took a few moments on the floor to catch his breath.

'You're a real… bitch, Bellatrix… Black…' He panted, staggering to his feet. He began trying to grab his wand from the pocket of his jeans.

'Expelliarmus!' Bella was too quick for him, and his wand flew into the air. Bella would have caught it, but she didn't aim the spell properly. It began to drop from the air, and someone caught it. Bella's eyes slowly followed the arm to their face. James Potter was smirking back at her, twisting the wand in his fingers. Lucas stormed past him, grabbing the wand on his way and striding off into the house.

James brushed past her, and delicately whispered to her.

'I think I can handle it, Bellatrix Black.' And with that, he walked back into the house, without casting a second glance back at her. She remained still, hoping that Lucy hadn't noticed anything unusual. Maybe that was wishful thinking.

'What the hell was James Potter playing at?' She asked Bella quickly, as soon as James was out of earshot. Bella shrugged, like it was nothing.

'Can't say I noticed.' She replied smoothly.

Lucy stared at her. '_What?_' She spat. 'You didn't notice? How? He caught Lucas' wand, surely he should have given it back to him… or stopped you in the first place!'

'He's a Gryffindor, Lucy, not just an enemy. He wouldn't have stopped me because I was doing the right thing, and he wouldn't have helped Lucas because he was in the wrong.' She explained calmly. She was actually very pleased with her explanation, as she had just made it up on the spot and hoped it sounded convincing.

Lucy took a moment to think about it, then finally nodded in agreement.

'I suppose so.' She added. A glint suddenly appeared in her eyes. 'I'm going back inside.' She decided and quickly scampered into the house. Bella watched her go and realised it why, when she saw Will sitting alone in his kitchen, and Lucy rapidly appeared by his side. Bella smirked to herself. However, now she was alone. And she didn't really feel like making friends tonight.

She made her way upstairs, not really sure what she was expecting to find. She'd never seen Will's bedroom, and that was possibly her main draw. Curiosity. But the first door she opened was not Will's room. It was a study, with a desk and a few books piled onto a coffee table. She noticed a figure standing by the window, gazing out of it, letting the breeze sweep his hair behind him.

'Well, well,' Bella began. 'James Potter? It seems our paths have crossed again.'

James turned away from the window as Bella approached him.

'Apparently so,' he couldn't help but smile at her.

'What are you doing up here? Shouldn't you be with your mates?' She asked him, joining him at the window, feeling her hair suddenly sweep behind her as the breeze caught it.

James shrugged. 'Sirius isn't speaking to me – or so Remus said. So I'm gonna leave it a while. He'll come round though… I'll tell him I hexed you, or something.'

Bella smirked. 'You know… you're just as bad as I am. Call yourself a Gryffindor? Sneaking around behind your best friend's back, then lying to him? Shocking.' She teased.

James grinned back at her, suddenly very amused. 'Would you rather I told him the truth?'

'And what would that be? That you've held a few conversations with me?'

James stared out of the window again, something still amusing him.

'Fine then. Don't tell me.' Bella said, impatient of waiting.

'I won't.' James replied with a smirk. He turned back around to her. 'Considering Sirius doesn't have a nice word to say about you… I'm struggling trying to think of a bad one.'

Bella felt her cheeks blushing and tried to hide it. She didn't reply to him for a while. 'So,' She said finally. 'after that display with Lucas… do you still think I'm harmless?'

He smiled at her. 'Still think I want to find out?'

'Well, do you?'

He laughed. 'I still think you're harmless.' He came a little closer. 'But I want to be proved wrong.' He said in little more than a whisper. She was about to reply, but she didn't get the chance. James kissed her. She didn't push him away – she was too stunned! It was over quickly, but James didn't step backwards.

'I still think you're harmless.' He concluded.

'You caught me off guard. That's not fair. Had I have seen that coming… you certainly wouldn't be saying that.'

James caught the sparkle in her eyes and believed every word she said. He would have kissed her again…

The door opened with a creek. Both Bella and James turned to stare, but neither of them thought that stepping apart might have been a good idea. Remus Lupin stood in the doorway, an expression on his face caught between shock and amusement.

'What's…' he began, but Bella had already planned her escape in the seconds it took Remus to speak. She gave no warning, then promptly slapped James across the face. He was about to shout out something in retaliation when she winked at him, before bringing back an angry expression. She stormed past Remus and flew out of the room. James clutched his hand to his cheek.

'Gonna tell me what the hell that was?' Remus asked him, a smirk creeping onto his lips. James rolled his eyes and sat down, Remus entered the room and shut the door behind him.


	4. Spending Money And Spending Time

Being woken up was never something Bellatrix liked, but she liked it even less when the noise that woke her up was someone crying. At first she thought she was still dreaming, but when she stared around her room and noticed a figure by the window, she realised it wasn't a dream. She brushed her thick hair out of her eyes and threw her covers off. She moved towards the figure in the window. To anyone else, this would have been cause for alarm, but not for Bella.

Narcissa turned her head when she heard Bella get up, using the sleeve of her pyjamas to wipe tears from her face. Bella put her arm around her sister and pulled her into a hug.

'What's wrong?' She asked her gently.

Narcissa took a small gasp before she spoke. 'He kissed Amelia.' She whispered. 'Lucius kissed Amelia.'

'Clearly he doesn't know what he's missing, does he, Cis?' Bella assured her strongly. Her sister made a whimpering noise.

'Besides,' Bella continued. 'it's not as if you don't know how to play that game, is it? You know how to get revenge better than anyone I know.' Bella heard Narcissa laugh delicately, and she smiled, releasing her from the hug.

Narcissa dried her eyes and looked back at her sister. 'Should I though? What if it's a misunderstanding…' Bella raised an eyebrow at her.

'Misunderstanding? How can kissing someone else be a misunderstanding?' She questioned.

'Well, we're not actually going out…'

'And? He's made it clear that he likes you. End of.' Bella shrugged. Narcissa shook her head. Why did Bella never understand? Just because everything was so black and white to her! Didn't mean everyone else saw things that way!

'Bella… you don't get it,' Narcissa tried to explain. 'I've got no ties on him, have I? So, why does that make it any of my business what he does with other girls? There's nothing I can do.'

Bella smirked. She admired her sister's naivety and innocence sometimes. 'There's always something you can do – just some things are more effective than others. You can always get revenge. Do to him what he did to you; lead him on then kiss someone else.' Bella explained it like it was obvious. It took a few seconds, but Narcissa eventually smiled back at her sister.

'Maybe you're right…' She agreed finally.

'Maybe?'

Narcissa grinned at her. 'Okay, you _are_ right.'

'Always am.' Bella beamed back at her sister. 'Now. Can I get back to sleep?'

Narcissa nodded and smiled. She gave Bella a quick hug before she got up to leave her room.

'Thank you.' She added, before she shut the door as she left. Bella shook her head. Poor Narcissa. She'd learn.

The sunlight began streaming in through the curtains, and once more, Bella woke up. She didn't feel like she'd had enough sleep, but that was hardly surprising. She quickly got dressed and went downstairs. Her mother was in the hallway, counting money into her purse.

'Ah, Bellatrix,' She looked up at her daughter as she came down the stairs. 'we're going into Diagon Alley today.' Bella nodded. 'You need to get your dress.'

'Dress?'

'For school? Remember? The ball they're planning? It was in your supplies list, you have seen it.' Her mother explained with a sympathetic smile and tone.

'Oh, right yeah.' Bella remembered it vaguely. It hadn't really entered her consciousness; she wasn't planning on going. Whenever something big like that happened, most of the Slytherins usually stayed in the common room and had their own party. Generally, they felt it was a better experience, and it came with the added bonus of not having to share it with other houses. Andromeda would revel in these parties though, all her friends were in other houses, she didn't have any friends in her own house. Bella had never been surprised at this. When she first started, Bellatrix had tried to help her make friends with people, advised that she could get on the Quidditch team, but she didn't even bother to _try_ anything. She'd rather be friends with everyone else rather than Slytherins, so Bella gave up trying to help her.

'Andromeda's already got her things sorted.' Her mother added.

'I bet she has.' Bella muttered, rolling her eyes.

'Don't be bitter, Bellatrix,' Her mother picked up her purse and held out the rest of the money to Bellatrix. She took it with a small smile. 'I do wish you would _try_ and get along with Andromeda.'

'But Narcissa doesn't either!' Bella protested.

'She tries harder than you do! At least she makes an effort. Sometimes I think you'd _rather_ hate her.'

Bella stared coldly at her mother. 'It's not that. She doesn't want me to be nice to her, so I won't be. And it's not like this is one way! She doesn't like me either!'

'Yes, yes, okay Bella,' She sighed. 'I know it's not one way. Anyway, you take the money and you can go with your sister to Diagon Alley, alright?'

'Yep. Fine.' Bella replied sourly.

'And do me a favour,' her mother added. 'don't go through Knocturn Alley this time? I don't want you blowing money on something like last time,' She glanced at a jar on top of the drawers behind her. There was a small dragon asleep inside it. 'No matter what Mr Borgin tells you about it. Because that is _not_ a Hungarian Horntail.'

'I know that now,' Bella shot back.

'You didn't at the time! It's no good knowing it now, is it?' Her mother was half laughing at the spite Bella had put into her expression. 'Go on then. Narcissa's in the kitchen.'

Bella marched past her and opened the kitchen door. Narcissa was sitting at the table, flicking through the morning's post.

'Anything?' Bella asked her.

'Nah.' She replied, putting down the stack of letters again. 'We going now, then?'

The girls arrived in Diagon Alley, like their mother had told Bellatrix. She would usually have taken the route to the fireplace in Borgin and Burke's, but she knew her mother would find out. She'd just walk there instead.

Diagon Alley wasn't too busy, because they'd got there early. There was no doubt it would get busier and day progressed – it always did.

'Where'd you wanna go for the dresses then?' Narcissa asked her. Bella glanced back at her.

'Er… tell you what. You go and have a look around for some nice ones, yeah? And I'll meet you back here in say… an hour?' Bella told her. Narcissa gave her a look but nodded nonetheless. Bella threw her a quick smile and walked off in the opposite direction. Narcissa knew exactly where she was going, and she would have gone with her, but the idea of dress shopping seemed far more appealing.

Bellatrix opened the door to Borgin and Burke's, and it squeaked through the silence as she did so. Mr Borgin, the aging man who ran the place, looked up from his books. He smiled at her, and she returned it.

'Miss Black,' He addressed her. 'School supplies shopping today?'

'Yeah,' She replied with a sigh. 'thought I'd come in here instead.'

'An excellent idea.' Mr Borgin agreed. There was something about that man that didn't seem at all menacing. Bella had heard stories of the way he 'procured' some of the stock he sold, but she didn't believe it. Now Mr Burke on the other hand, no one ever saw him, and he wasn't dead, so she assumed it was him who did the business of stock collecting.

Bella stared around the shop. Everything changed every time she was in there, and that's why she liked it. There was always new things she'd never seen before – and, the best part, it was okay to ask questions. They would always be answered.

She spotted a small box in the corner of the room, it was black with a transparent lid. The contents seemed to be a lot of swirling black and silver smoke. Mr Borgin joined her to peer at it.

'What's this?' She asked him, still watching the smoke.

'That is an Anubis box,' He told her quietly. 'very rare item.'

'What does it do?' She looked up at him this time.

He titled his head to one side slightly. 'It saves dark thoughts… they usually come as a pair. Somewhat of a messaging system. Extraordinarily dark item, Miss Black, very dark.'

'But you've only got one…' She stated slowly.

'Only one _on display_,' He corrected her. 'We're working on getting the sister box.' He explained with a small smile. Bella smiled back and nodded, then stepped away from the box to look at something else. She spotted a small round orb, with a hole at the top, balanced on a small black platform. She walked over to that, curious as to what it's purpose was.

'Ah, the Gravida Orb,' Mr Borgin said, once more following her across the shop. 'the owner can set the emotion of a particular room to whatever they wish.' Bella stared back at him. That was truly impressive. He nodded, he could tell she was struggling to believe it. 'For example, say you wanted someone to tell you something… you would be able to set the atmosphere of the room so that your subject would feel an overwhelming sense of trust for you.' Bella's jaw dropped.

'Really?'

Mr Borgin nodded again. Bella smiled to herself. She liked this item. But, she couldn't think of a use for it, so continued around the shop.

'Actually,' Mr Borgin said suddenly. 'I have something you might be interested in. One moment,' He wandered off into the back room of the shop. Bella liked it when he saved things for her, because usually, he was right about what she liked. The dragon box had been something she'd seen by herself and bought on a whim. She wasn't even sure that Mr Borgin knew he was lying when he told her it was Hungarian Horntail, after all, he owned a shop, he wasn't a dragon breeder.

He re-immerged carrying a small black box. He placed it on the counter and opened it carefully, revealing what looked just like a piece of glass with a handle. The glass was slightly coloured, and as the angle of it shifted as it was removed from the box, the colours changed.

'This is an Animi Speculum,' He told her, passing the handle to her.

'What does it do?'

'This is a very special item,' Mr Borgin informed her. 'if you look through it you will be able to see people's… emotions, so to speak. You can read their interactions, is probably a more accurate description.' Bellatrix was still looking confused. 'Look out of the window, give it a go.' He told her. She agreed and wandering over to the window. She saw a guy and a girl talking at the opposite side of the street. She held the glass up. She grinned at what she saw. There were words simply hanging in the air in the space between them. An arrow pointed to the girl, it said _madly in love_. The other arrow pointed to the guy, and said _thinks she's annoying, but he's trying to be polite._ Bella smirked. She liked this glass. She took it back over to the counter.

'Impressed?' Mr Borgin asked her, full well knowing what the answer would be.

'Absolutely.' Bella beamed back at him. 'That's amazing. It's like it's talking to you… it seems almost… friendly.'

He nodded. 'It knows about you when you hold it. It tells you what you want to know, even if you don't know, and tells you in terms you'll understand.' He continued to explain. Bella didn't need any more convincing.

'How much is it?' She asked him. His smile seemed to widen.

'Sixteen galleons…' He told her. 'But, for you, I'd be willing to lower it to fourteen.'

Bella thought about it for a moment. It still left her with just enough money to find a dress, and she had her Gringotts key so she could get some money if she needed it… it just meant she'd have to be very careful not to let her parents know she'd done it. They told her the money in her vault was for emergencies, and to help her buy a house when she was older.

She passed the money across the counter as Mr Borgin put the Animi Speculum back into its box and sealed it once more. He took the money from her and it flew into the till.

'An excellent buy,' He told her. 'use it well.'

'Certainly,' She grinned at him and slipped the box into her bag. She left the shop and made her way back to Diagon Alley. She didn't do what most people did in Knocturn Alley – keep their heads down and walk quickly. But then again, there were _very_ different types of people who came to Knocturn Alley. As she saw someone turning the corner, she wished she had been keeping her head down.

'Bellatrix!'

'Oh shit,' She muttered to herself, as Rodolphus Lestrange walked towards her. She put on a fake smile.

'How are you?' He asked her rather awkwardly, beginning to wonder why he'd even come over to her. Bella secretly wished she could get out the glass she'd just bought and find out what he really wanted.

'Good, thanks.' She replied with a sigh. 'And yourself?'

'Excellent,' He answered, grinning.

After a moment of silence, Bella spoke. 'I need to find my sister, if you'll excuse me.' She began to walk past him, but he called her name once more. She turned around reluctantly.

'I just… I wanted to know if you… maybe wanted to get a drink or something?' He asked her stupidly.

She gave him a slightly pitying look. 'I don't think that's a good-'

'I haven't seen you all holidays, Bella, just a catch up, you know?'

Bella looked at her watch. She hoped it would be sooner to meeting Narcissa than it was. She glanced back at Roddy, standing hopelessly in the middle of the street, anticipation all over his face. She sighed.

'Alright. But it's going to have to be quick.' In her head she was saying _it always used to be…_ but she figured it would probably hurt his feelings to say it out loud, and forced herself to bite her tongue. As much as she didn't think he made a good boyfriend, she wanted to still be friends with him. He was smiling the entire way to the coffee shop. Bella felt like slapping him just wipe that idiotic grin of his face – but she resisted the urge.

They found a table at the back of the shop and he brought her back a drink from the counter. She took a sip and glanced out of the window. They were back in Diagon Alley now, and it was getting busier now. She was hoping to catch the eye of someone she knew, who'd come and rescue her from this fate.

'So,' Roddy began. 'done much this summer?'

She looked back at him, taking her eyes off the street. 'Yeah, a bit. I went to Will Skeeter's party the other night.' She told him. He nodded, slight disappointment behind his eyes. He was never friends with Will, but he used to go to his parties because Bella was going, and she'd take him because they were together.

'Many people go, did they?'

She nodded. 'Yep.'

'Who did you go with?'

'Lucy.'

He stared at her. She smirked.

'I know what you meant, Roddy,' She told him, raising in eyebrow. 'I just went with my friend. I didn't bring a date, sometimes people can go a night without a date.' She added. One of the reasons she hadn't liked going out with him was that he was too clingy, and used to make it a priority that they did everything together.

'Right…' He replied slowly.

Someone approached the table, and placed the bill in the centre.

'Thanks.' Roddy replied, without even looking up.

Bella bit her lip to refrain from laughing as she saw who'd just brought their bill. James Potter was grinning down at her. He clearly had picked up a Saturday job there, as he was wearing the employee shirt, with a huge sizzling coffee cup on the chest, that simmered as steam rose from it at random intervals.

'Nice shirt.' Bella teased in a whisper, as Roddy stared outside, assuming the conversation was over.

'Yeah?' James smirked. He leant slightly closer to avoid Roddy hearing his comment. 'It would look better on your bedroom floor.' He flashed her a smile and left the table. Bella felt herself blushing but quickly covered it up and regained her composure. Roddy suddenly lifted his head up.

'Was that Potter?' He asked, only just noticing.

Bella shrugged. 'Can't say I was paying that much attention.' She lied smoothly. He nodded and took a sip of coffee.

'Probably had to pick up a job, the family will go bankrupt if he doesn't.' He said with a sneer. Bellatrix simply smiled back.

'_Actually_,' She replied quickly. 'I heard his family are quite well off.'

Roddy glanced back at her, a quizzical look on his face.

'Is that so?'

She nodded, and smiled again, slightly smugly. Roddy simply nodded back and didn't reply. Bella felt like she'd done something to offend him – she couldn't think what, but considering this was his idea, he wasn't saying an awful lot.

'You done anything in the holidays?' She asked him, trying to bring back the conversation again, even just for Roddy's sake.

He shook his head. 'Not really. Went to Scotland for a while, visiting family up there. You remember my uncle Althawp right?' She nodded. Bella vaguely remembered him, crazy old fool, if she remembered correctly. 'Well. He thought he'd invented a new type of Draught of the Living Dead.' He looked back up at her. 'He hadn't.' He shrugged and continued. 'And my brother went to France with his friend… apparently they hooked up with a bunch of Beauxbaton's girls… don't believe a word of it myself.'

Bella nodded back politely, slightly regretting asking. She glanced at the clock above the counter of the shop. She actually should get going soon.

'Don't tell me,' Roddy said before she had the chance. 'you gotta go, right?' She nodded and tried to look just a little bit sympathetic. She was about to get up and leave, when she heard her name from close by, as Narcissa emerged by her side, someone else following behind her.

Bella stared up at her, and her eyes darted left to see who else was with her. She didn't really know any of Narcissa's friends, but this was a blonde guy, who she could only assume, was Lucius Malfoy.

'Alright?' Bella asked her sister, trying to ask with her eyes if this was the guy that had upset her so much previously.

Narcissa gently shook her head at her sister, unnoticed by anyone else. 'Bella, this is Lucius.' He extended his hand and Bella, reluctantly, shook it.

'I ran into him while I was shopping,' She continued. 'erm…' Narcissa knew what she was trying to ask, and Bella decided to pick up where her sister finished.

'I'll be going then.' She said, forcing a smile, and getting up from the table. She could tell that Roddy would have objected, had they not have had company. She glanced at him and he held his hand up.

'I'll get the tab, Bella.' He told her. She shook her head.

'No, you won't.' She said simply, and made her way towards the counter at the opposite end of the coffee shop. She wasn't really that bothered about who paid the bill, but, if she paid it, she'd have a reasonable excuse to go to the counter.

James turned around to lean over the counter, a cheeky smile on his lips. Bella passed over the bill and the money to cover it. James put it in the till and handed her back the change, still barely taking his eyes off her.

'So, where you off next?' He asked her, picking up a cloth and drying a few cups on the counter.

'I need to get a dress.' She told him with a sigh. 'For that ball at school.'

James nodded. 'Yeah I had to get dress robes for that. Refused to let my mum get them for me, I'd look like a bloody pansy or something.' He grinned at her.

'What time d'you finish here, then?' She tried to slip it into conversation, so that it didn't sound like she was actually asking him.

His eyes told her that he knew exactly what she asking.

'Whenever,' He replied quietly. 'I can finish now… if you want me to?'

'And what makes you think I _want_ you to come with me?' She asked him, lifting her head slightly. He gave her a look and raised an eyebrow. 'Yeah, finish now.' She continued, knowing he already knew the answer.

'I'll just go tell Eddie I'm going then,' He turned to go through an arch that led to a back room. He momentarily turned back to beckon Bella to follow him. She glanced around to check no one was looking in her direction. Narcissa and Lucius had apparently sat down with Roddy, and seemed to be engaged in a very engrossing conversation. No doubt Bella would hear all about that later. She followed James.

'Eddie?' James called a few times, Bella following him through a small corridor to a back room, where coffee machines sat sizzling off their own accord. A middle aged, balding man was sat in a chair in the centre of them, seemingly asleep. James rolled his eyes and roughly gave the man a shake.

'Eddie!'

He jumped slightly and his eyes opened. 'James? What d'you want?'

'I'm finishing now.' James said abruptly.

Eddie stared at him and shook his head slowly. 'Fine, fine. You just come and go as you please, then, James.' He muttered sarcastically.

'Well it's not as if you pay me, is it?' James told him, before turning around without waiting for a response, although it didn't seem like he was going to get one anyway. James entered a second room, smaller, with a few coat hangers hanging from the walls, attached to nothing. James took down a t-shirt that was hanging on one of them, and proceeding the take off the shirt he was wearing. Bella stared. He was really toned underneath that, which she should have expected, she'd played Quidditch against him enough times. She swallowed, hoping her expression remained cool and calm. James glanced back at her and smirked. Clearly her expression was not so collected.

'What?' Bella asked him, trying to look like she wasn't impressed and leaning against the door frame.

'You're staring.' He said simply, turning to her – still shirtless.

She pouted slightly. 'Only a little.'

He shook his head with a smile and put his t-shirt on, throwing the other shirt into a basket at the corner of the room. 'Come on then.' He said to her, taking her hand and leading her out of the coffee shop. She hoped that no one saw this, but didn't have time to check. She smiled to herself, at least she was in his company, which seemed to please her. Surprisingly.


	5. Revelation

Bella and James walked down a few streets before they got off the beaten track of mainstream Diagon Alley.

'Where are we going?' James asked, for what seemed like the tenth time.

'A shop,' Bella said – again.

'I've never been here before,' James continued, staring around as they walked.

Bella smirked. 'Get used to it. If your gonna hang around with me, you'll be going a lot of places you've never been before.'

James laughed. 'I hope you're right.' He told her, as she turned slightly to see the smile on his face. She grabbed his hand and pulled him into a sharp right turn and then into a small shop. A bell above the door rung as they stepped inside. It had seemed small on the outside, but the shop actually travelled backwards for quite a long way, with rows and rows of clothes on rails lining the sides, and displays of shoes running through the centre. Bella saw James' jaw drop slightly, either from awe at the size of the shop, or realising what he'd actually let himself in for. Bella smirked and led him towards the back of the shop.

A sales assistant wearing purple robes addressed her.

'Miss Black,' She said in a Barbie-style voice. 'would you like to see the items I've held back for you?'

'Yeah, thanks.' Bella replied, not even trying to make her tone match the level of formality that had been previously employed. James held back a laugh.

'No need to show off the fact that you're loaded…' He whispered to her, as they followed the sales assistant into another room and out of the main shop.

Bella grinned. 'What's it for if I'm not supposed to spend it?' She shot back playfully. James shrugged. His parents kept all his money tied up in trust funds that didn't activate until he became of age, but he still didn't think he'd be able to spend money quite like Bellatrix – even if he had it to spend.

They were led into a well lit room, with a sofa at one wall, a clothes rail on another, and a small changing stall opposite.

'Would you like anything else, Miss Black?' The assistant asked her, the same slippery smile on her face, that she hoped would persuade Bella to buy more things.

'No thanks.' Bella told her, and waited for her to leave before going to scan through the rail of clothes. 'You might as well sit down, James.' She told him. He smiled at her before taking a seat on the sofa.

'Everyone's gonna think I'm your new boyfriend or something…' James said after a while. Bella picked up the dresses she'd decided on, and looked back at him.

'More like gay best friend.' She grinned at him. James rolled his eyes with a smile. 'Tell me what you think of these.' Bella changed the subject quickly, and disappeared into the changing stall.

'Sure,' James called to her. 'But you'll probably look better without any of them.'

Bella was glad he couldn't see her blush after he'd said that. She'd never been with anyone as forward as James was, but she quite liked it. Roddy would have literally died if he'd have heard anyone saying that to her, let alone if he'd said it himself. She liked how different James was. She didn't know many Gryffindors, but she highly doubted that they were all like he was.

She took the first dress off the hanger; a loose fitting dark blue one, that stopped just above her knees. She wasn't really too keen on it, but she figured it might look better on her than on the hanger. She pulled it on and turned around to see it in the mirror. It certainly didn't look much better, but it was a slight improvement.

'Let's see then!' She heard James call out. She pulled back the curtain and looked at him. He studied her for a moment, then promptly shook his head.

'You look good in everything, Bella,' He began. 'but all I can see is the dress.'

'What?' Bella asked, confused.

James raised an eyebrow. 'Too much fabric.' He said simply. She stared back at him. 'Not enough skin.' Bella smirked at him and pulled the curtain back into place to try on another one. She ignored the next dress she'd picked out – it was a longer one, and James was certain to say the exact same thing about it as the previous one. She skipped to another one, a red one, that was short even for Bella's standards. It was also quite low cut, something she was sure James would appreciate. She stared at her reflection. She couldn't help feeling that she looked more like a hooker than anything else. She opened the curtain again nonetheless.

She saw James' eyes light up the second her saw her.

'Before you say anything,' Bella told him before he had a chance to speak. 'I look like a prostitute. And I don't like it.'

'No you don't!' James protested. 'You look amazing!' He exhaled and stared at her again. 'I like this one.'

'Thought you might.' Bella muttered. 'Well, I don't, so… tough luck.' She drew the curtain and took off the hooker dress. She sighed as she thought about the other ones that were left. A black one seemed to catch her eye. She tried it on. It was short, but still longer than the red one, and it was low cut, but not enough to make her feel like she was too on show. She smiled at her reflection. There was something about this little black dress that made her feel like all eyes would be on her if she wore it – and she liked that thought.

James grinned at her as she opened the curtain once more. She looked stunning. More than stunning, she looked beautiful.

'Wow,' He breathed, barely audible. Bella beamed at him, evidently impressed with his reaction. 'get that one.' James concluded.

'Sure?' Bella asked him, pouting slightly as she mused over the dress.

'Definitely,' James told her. 'if you don't get that dress, I'll insist you go in your underwear.' Bella raised her eyebrows. She didn't doubt that he'd do that whether she bought the dress or not.

'In your dreams.' Bella told him quickly, disappearing back into the stall to change out of the dress.

'And it certainly will be.' James' voice came back. Bella grinned to herself. She took off the dress and hung it back on its hanger before putting on her own clothes once more. She was very pleased with the dress, and she was glad James liked it. She was confused though. Bella wondered why it mattered to her so much what James thought about it. Something so insignificant as a dress, and she was basing most of her decision on what his impressions of it were. She shook her head. It wasn't that it was James specifically, she tried to convince herself, it was that he'd give a male opinion about it. His opinion could represent any of the guys at school! She looked back at the mirror for a final time. Her reflection was not convinced by her explanation. She grabbed the black dress and left the changing stall before she started an argument with her own reflection.

James got up off the sofa.

'Good to go?' He asked her. She smiled at him for a moment before replying.

'Nope.'

'Why?'

'I need shoes.'

James groaned and followed her, and the black dress, back into the main shop. 'Am I getting paid for this?' He asked cheekily.

'You wish,' Bella scoffed, her attention almost entirely taken up by her effort to find the perfect set of shoes. 'We'll go for a drink after then. How's that?'

'Alright,' James replied. 'but I'm choosing where.'

Bella shrugged. 'Fine by me,' She glanced at him. 'but I'm not drinking coffee – I'm sick of it.'

James winked at her. 'Fine by me.' He repeated. Bella smiled and diverted her eyes back to the shoes. She wanted the perfect pair to match her dress, and she didn't have to look for long to find them. She spotted a shiny black pair of heels – not too tall, but just enough. She was already tall enough for her liking, so she needed shoes the right height. She picked up a box with her shoe size on. James leaned over her shoulder.

'You've got tiny feet if they'll fit.' He commented. Bella turned to give him a strange look.

'They're a size six, James. That's normal.' Bella told him, walked over to the till with her dress and shoes.

'Really?' James continued. 'God. I forget how small girls actually are.'

'What?'

'Just generally.'

'Oh? And don't tell me – you take shoes that are a ridiculously big size, right?' She said, raising her eyebrows in a slightly cheeky fashion.

James grinned at her. 'Wouldn't you like to know.' He said simply. Bella shook her head with a smile and paid for her dress and shoes, and taking back the bag the assistant put them in. They promptly left the shop, the bell tinkling again as they did so.

'So,' James said as they casually began walking back to the main strip of Diagon Alley. 'we having that drink now then?'

'Sure,' Bella agreed. 'where are we going to go?'

James paused and looked at her, a cheeky smirk on his face. 'I've got a flat in Diagon Alley.'

'And I'm the one who's loaded?' Bella shot back sarcastically.

He shrugged. 'There's a bottle of wine in the fridge.'

'You got me. Lead the way.'

James' flat was on the edge of the main street in Diagon Alley, and Bella just hoped that no one would see her going into a block of flats with James Potter – she'd never live it down. James, on the other hand, didn't seem to care who saw him with her. She couldn't understand that, but didn't question it. It was a lovely flat though, stylish modern furnishings and light airy windows. It looked very expensive.

'This place is so nice, James,' Bella commented out loud.

'Thanks,' James grinned back at her, falling back onto the black sofa and opening the mini-fridge next to it and taking out a bottle of wine and two glasses. Bella took another glance around and then sat down next to James as he handed her a glass.

'I'm starting to think you've got me down as some kind of alcoholic.' Bella smirked at James. He took a sip of his own drink and smiled at her.

'So?' He laughed.

Bella smiled at him. 'I'm not. Just so you know.'

James shrugged. 'That's fair.' He beamed at her.

'Is the flat yours then? Or your families?' She asked James.

'Gold digger?' James teased, a playful smile on his face.

'I'm just asking!'

'I know, I know,' James smiled. 'and it's my families, until I come of age – like everything else that should be mine.' He explained. Bella nodded. She silently wondered what it was like to have all these things, but know that they weren't yours yet.

'So… any one of your family could randomly appear at the door?'

James chuckled. 'I guess so.'

'And what would they say to having me sitting in here, drinking wine with you?'

'Probably nothing, actually,' James said casually. Bella gave him a look of disbelief. 'until they realised who you were.' He continued with a smirk.

'That's more realistic.' Bella laughed.

'Just out of interest,' James began, a cheeky grin on his face, and Bella knew instantly he was going to say something she probably didn't want to hear. 'are you the kind of girl who's gonna get all turned on if I say this is _forbidden_ or whatever?'

'Fuck off, James.'

'That's a 'no' then.' James smirked. Bella found it very difficult not to smile when James was around, as once again, he broke her cold expression.

'So,' James carried on, edging a little bit closer, put his glass onto the coffee table. Bella mirrored him. 'what _does_ turn you on then?'

'Bit soon for that, isn't it?' Bella said back with a smile. James gave her a puppy-eyes expression.

'It doesn't have to be.' James said in a voice close to a whisper. Bella leant closer to him so their lips were almost touching.

'That was too slick, Potter.' She whispered, before she sat right back, away from him. James bit his lip.

'You're really gonna make me work to get you, aren't you?' James asked her, disappointment creeping into his voice.

'Yeah.' Bella told him honestly.

'One thing, though,' James began.

'What?'

He did it so fast that Bella had no choice in the matter. He leant in quickly and kissed her. It didn't last long, but he didn't move away from her until after he spoke.

'You ought to know that I always find a way round hard work.' He told her with a smile. She couldn't help but smile back at him. He probably would have kissed her again, and she wouldn't have objected, but there something stopped them.

'James! Hey! James, you there?' A voice called from the hallway outside the flat.

'Shit…' James muttered. Bella knew that voice anywhere. Sirius. 'You're gonna have to hide somewhere.'

'What? Where?'

'I don't know!' James was beginning to panic now, there was no way he could cover up the fact he'd just been kissing Sirius' cousin. How would he even explain why she was there in the first place? 'Cupboard?' James suggested. There was a wardrobe on the other side of the room. James swung the door open hurriedly and Bella climbed inside it. Luckily there was only a few shirts hanging up, so there was enough space for her to sit on the floor of the wardrobe perfectly comfortably.

James cast her an apologetic glance before he shut the doors. After a moment they opened again, and Bella's bag joined her in the wardrobe. She bit her lip to stop herself laughing as Sirius opened the door and James almost jumped out of his skin.

'Hey!' James greeted him too enthusiastically. Sirius looked at him strangely.

'Alright?' He glanced to the coffee table. 'Drinking wine alone? Bit of a sad act, James.' He took a second glance. 'Someone else been here?'

'No. Why?'

'Two glasses – bit of a giveaway.' Sirius grinned at his friend. 'Who was she?'

'I…' James thought on his feet. 'Lily Evans.'

Bella glared at him through the crack in the wardrobe door. Lily fucking Evans. She rolled her eyes. Now _that_ was a sad act.

'Ahhh,' Sirius smirked. 'nice one, James!'

James grinned back awkwardly. He felt guilty for lying to him.

'Get far?' Sirius asked him.

'Nah,' James shook his head. 'just a kiss.'

'How come? That's not like you.' Sirius commented, sitting down on the sofa and taking a can of pop from the mini-fridge.

'Er…' James cast a sideways glance at the wardrobe. He didn't even have to see Bella's face to know that she was giving him such and evil look right now…

'She wants me to work at it, y'know? Gotta prove something, or whatever.' James said casually, sitting down next to his friend. Bella silently decided that James was now going to have to work even harder for her, and prove that he wasn't a serial player! She then got an idea. She quietly reached into her bag and tried to find the Animi Speculum she'd bought earlier. She finally felt her hand touch the box and she pulled it out of her bag. She carefully removed the item from its box and position it so she could look through the glass and through the crack in the wardrobe. Her eyes landed on Sirius first. _Completely lost, very much relies on his friends._ It paused. _Scared_. Bella smirked. Sirius? Scared? Brilliant. She shifted the glass to look at James. _Adores his friend._ It paused again. _Sick of him not pulling himself together, and relying on him all the time_. Sirius was talking nonstop about something, and James' eyes darted back to the wardrobe. Bella was still holding the glass up, but nearly dropped it when she saw the words that were now hanging in the air between her and James. _He thinks she's the most beautiful thing he's ever seen. He wants her._

Bella swallowed hard, and put the Animi Speculum back into its box, deciding that it had caused enough trouble for today, and slipped it back into her bag. _He wants her._ Oh God. Bella stared at him, wondering whether he might know that she now knew that. He couldn't know, obviously. But she still wondered whether he did. Did she want him?

'Why don't you go out to the shop?' James said suddenly. 'Get something to eat, yeah? I've got no food in.'

'Oh… yeah. Sure.' Sirius got up. 'Back in a min, then.' And left the flat. James sighed and slumped backwards onto the arm of the sofa. Bella opened the doors of the wardrobe quietly, not quite knowing what to say to him.

'You should go.' James told her, and didn't turn around.

'Yeah, I know.' Bella replied slowly, making her way towards him. 'I'll see you at school, then.' She told him, walking straight past him and heading for the door.

'Bella?'

'Yeah?' She turned around. James kissed her again. Differently from before. This was slow and romantic… and a little bit perfect. So good, that when he broke away, she followed him a fraction of an inch.

'D'you know something?' James asked her. She didn't reply, just looked in his eyes. 'I'm going to miss you until we go back.'


	6. Habits

Bella was enjoying a moment of peace and quiet in her room when the door flew open and her thoughts were interrupted by the grinning face of her youngest sister.

'What?' Bella snapped, glaring at her for not knocking.

'Mum and dad are going away for the weekend!' Narcissa said, slightly breathlessly.

'Oh,' Bella replied expressionlessly. 'so?'

'_So_,' She looked at her like it was obvious. 'We gonna have a party then?'

Bella thought about it momentarily. She beamed at her sister.

'Narcissa,' Bella began. '_that_ is why I love you.'

'Love you too, Bells.' Narcissa winked at her. 'And so – we're gonna have a party?'

'Oh, yes.'

Downstairs that evening, after the girls had said goodbye to their parents, Bella followed Andromeda into the library. Annie knew her sister was following her, but sat down and got out a book anyway.

'Annie,' Bella began. Annie simple nodded in acknowledgment and didn't bother looking up to address her. 'we were thinking about having a party while mum and dad are away.'

'They won't like that.' Annie stated flatly, her eyes still paying more attention to the page than her sister.

'They won't _know_.' Bella corrected her. 'Anyway. You can invite some of your mates if you like.'

'That's unusually kind of you.' Annie commented, intrigued. She looked up from her book to meet her sister's gaze.

'So long as you invite James Potter.' Bella continued with a smirk.

'What? Why?' Annie argued. Bella could tell she wasn't protesting about it, she knew how crazy about James Annie had been. Although, she hadn't mentioned him recently.

'Just because I want you to.' Bella shrugged. 'Besides, you'd invite Sirius, wouldn't you? And James would come anyway if Sirius was…'

Annie laughed suddenly – a cold and slightly mocking laugh. 'Either there's something going on between you and James – or you're just out to cause trouble.' Annie paused to give her sister a cold stare. 'And I think I can tell which.'

'And what the hell does it matter to you? I want you to invite James Potter. End of. Are you in or not?' Bella gave her the ultimatum. She knew Annie wouldn't be able to resist. As much as her younger sister liked to pretend she was morally better off than her siblings; she couldn't resist a bit of drama – especially when it was happening before her eyes.

'Fine.' Annie agreed finally. 'But my friends are coming as well.'

Bella made a wrecking sound. 'Fine, fine. Just don't invite any mudblood, will you? I'm not putting up with _that_.'

Annie smirked back at her sister and shook her head slowly, in defiance. 'No, no, no. If you want me to invite James, then I'm inviting my friends… Whatever their blood status.'

'_Andromeda_,' Bella moaned, sinking into a chair opposite her. 'Why would you even want filth like them anywhere near here?' She asked with a defeated sigh.

'Because they're my friends! What does it matter whether someone's parents are magical or not?'

Bella glared at her sister, her dark eyes lined with a fiery orange colour in the light. 'It matters because if someone's parents aren't magical – they neither are they. Whatever gifts or talents they may have are irrelevant. They just can't be properly magical if they haven't got magical blood.' Bella told her harshly.

Annie simply smiled back at her. 'I disagree.' She said flatly, promptly getting up and leaving the room. Bella shook her head in anger, her hair flying over one shoulder, and quietly left the room after her sister. But – at least James was coming to the party, even if she would have to put up with her sister's mudblood friends lurking around the place.

The party came sooner than Bella cared to witness. She hadn't really prepared anything for it. There were beers and bottles of wine in the fridge, and that was about it. But then again, it's not as if she cared too much about that. She knew people generally brought their own with them anyway. Her main concern was not running out of drinks. It was James Potter.

She was staring at herself in the mirror, the ticking of the clock echoing in her ears. Go with a black dress? Subtle, sexy, stunning? Or go for something a little more outgoing? A purple dress? Blue? She ran her hands through her hair in frustration. She'd have to choose something, she could hardly answer the door in her underwear. Although, she had an inkling that James wouldn't mind. She made a snap decision and picked up a red dress from the wardrobe. It wasn't actually hers, it was Andromeda's, and Bella had borrowed it for some event she couldn't quite remember, and just never given it back. It fitted perfectly, even though Annie was a year younger than Bella. She smiled at her reflection. She grabbed some hairspray (a super-strength mix she'd found in Diagon Alley) and began attacking her crazy hair with it. She had to put it in some sort of order, even if it still looked wild. She just had time to place a small black bow in her hair before the doorbell rang. She was about to leave to answer it, when she heard Narcissa get it instead.

'Hi, Lucius!' Bella heard her sister say, trying to suppress the obvious excitement she had. Bella sighed and rolled her eyes to herself. She almost felt sorry for Narcissa.

People began to arrive in dribs and drabs, and by the time Bella decided to grace the party with her presence, it was actually quite busy. She walked into the lounge quite dubiously, hoping she wouldn't run into someone she didn't want to speak to. She noticed Annie in the corner of the room, sitting chatting to her friends, some of whom were so very obviously mudbloods. There was one boy in particular who seemed very intrigued by the magical objects in the room, and Annie looked more than happy to explain to him what they were. Bella couldn't help but smirk as she saw the expressions of some of the other guests, who were less than impressed at the class of people who surrounded Annie. Bella was about to turn around and try to find Narcissa when she heard her name.

'Hey, Bella,' She spun around to smile at her cousin, Regulus. He looked good tonight, wearing a crisp white shirt and a loose tie.

'Hi, Reg,' Bella replied. 'Sirius with you?' She tried to make it sound casual.

Regulus nodded sourly. 'Yeah. Him and his mates. I've seen Lupin and Pettigrew lurking somewhere, and we arrived with Potter, so I know he's here.' Bella could almost feel the anger radiating from her cousin as he spoke.

'Ah, yeah, I think Annie invited them, didn't she?' Bella said calmly, all too happy to blame this on her sister.

'Probably,' Regulus agreed, glancing over at Annie. 'Who's she with now? That mudblood who looks like he's never seen magic before.'

Bella followed his gaze. Annie was now showing him an ornamental potion vile that changed colour based on your mood. She rolled her eyes.

'No idea,' Bella answered, slightly annoyed. 'Tonks or something? He's a Gryffindor.'

'Figured as much.' Regulus said.

The potion vile that Annie passed to him was steadily changing colour, as they both had hold of it. It sparkled silver for a moment, before turning gold, and then pink. Bella glared. Pink?

'Bloody hell. You wanna keep a grip on your little sister, Bella,' Regulus told her, the same angered twinge in his voice that Bella had in her mind at that moment. 'you don't want her being snatched up by some mudblood. They're animals, they are. Next thing you know she's pregnant and being hidden in the cellar.'

Bella's eyes flitted away from the scene and back to her cousin. 'I'd like to see _you_ try and keep her under control. She won't listen to a word I say to her.' She left the room swiftly afterwards.

It didn't take Bella long to find James Potter. He was in the kitchen with Remus Lupin. James was perched on the table, talking to Remus while drinking a beer. His eyes met with Bella and he slipped her a cheeky grin. She smiled back, before her attention was taken away by someone else.

'Bella! Wondered when you'd put in an appearance,'

She grimaced and met the eyes of the person she'd forgotten might be at the party that night. Roddy was staring back at her, trying to analyze what he thought he'd just seen.

'Alright, Roddy?' Bella asked him, trying to be polite.

'Yeah,' He answered slightly moodily. 'would have liked to have received and invite from you, rather than Narcissa, though.'

So that was the reason she'd forgotten he would be there. She hadn't even invited him! She made a mental note to kill her sister later.

'Well you got invited. What does it matter who did the inviting?' Bella shrugged, trying to pretend it was all part of some kind of plan, that she wasn't just trying to ignore him. Which she was.

'I suppose so.' He took a sip of the glass of wine he was holding. Bella smirked at the fact he was drinking wine – alone.

'Not drinking beer?' She commented, trying to be subtle in her sarcasm.

'No,' He replied bitterly. 'I know you will though.' There was more than a sting in his tone of voice.

'Yes, I will,' She agreed, her tone no longer bubbly and friendly. 'and I'm going to, so if you'll excuse me.' She didn't wait around for a reply as she walked to the other side of the kitchen. She about to reach for the fridge, when James Potter slid across the table and opened it for her. She took out a beer and smiled at James.

'Bellatrix Black,' He addressed her with a wink.

'James Potter,' She replied smoothly. She took a step as James slid back along the table, and returned to Remus Lupin. He gave Bella a somewhat knowing look. She dismissed it.

'I gotta hold it to you,' James said to her. 'you hold a pretty decent party.'

'Thanks,' Bella smiled back, trying not to look too happy about that.

'I was shocked to have received and invite though,' Lupin entered the conversation, giving James a subtle look.

Bella shrugged. 'It was Annie's choice.'

'She doesn't know me.' Lupin replied, slightly confused.

'Doesn't she?' Bella let her tone slip for a minute as she was genuinely shocked at this. So she was the only one who actually knew him? She had just assumed that Annie must have known him, too!

'I have no idea then,' She continued. 'she probably just invited you because you're friends with Sirius… and James.'

'Probably.' Lupin agreed quietly. 'I'm going to go and find Sirius.' He said quickly, and left the room without another word. James smirked.

'Just me and you then, Bella.' He grinned at her cheekily.

'Anyone would think we're trying to make a habit of this.' Bella told him with a smile.

'Maybe I am.' James replied smoothly. He turned around briefly, to glance around the room. Once he was satisfied that no one important was around, he pulled Bella closer to him. Enough for it to look suspicious, but not enough to prove anything.

He slid off the table so he was face to face with her. He leant closer and whispered in her ear.

'I want you, Bellatrix.' He kissed her neck softly, and walked away. Bella breathed out and tried to compose herself after what James had just said. She couldn't help but smile.

Bella made a decision, and left the room, wondering where James could have gone to next, having just said what he had. She saw her sister, Narcissa, in the hallway as soon as she left the kitchen. She was chatting away happily with Lucius Malfoy. Bella raised her eyebrows at her when they made eye contact. Narcissa gave her a smile before looking back at Lucius. As Bella stared ahead of her, she saw James, leaning against the banister on the stairs looking smug. He gave Bella a cheeky look as she approached. He was evidently waiting for her.

'Follow me upstairs,' She told him quietly. 'but not too closely.' She swept past him and up the stairs. She was wondering where she was trying to lead James to. She couldn't take him to her bedroom, it was a complete mess! There were clothes sprawled everywhere, books out of place, and she was pretty sure her bed wasn't even made. She'd feel guilty going to Narcissa's room, she might need it. She wouldn't need it for the same thing that Bella wanted it for, but she might just want to have a more private conversation with Lucius, or a cheeky kiss over a view of the city. Bella made a silent apology to Andromeda as she opened the door to her bedroom. She'd never voice and apology, so a silent one was the best her sister would get.

She waited a moment for James to follow her inside, before she shut the door behind him. She was about to reach for the light switch, before James put his hand over hers and stopped her.

'Don't bother.' He told her. She didn't get a chance to reply, because James kissed her the second he'd said that. She felt his hands inching down her back, and the zip of her dress going with it.

'It never did seem right, seeing you dressed in red,' James said quietly, as the zip reached the end of its track. Bella giggled.

'Why?' She asked, knowing full well the reason why. She heard James laugh.

'Would I look right in green?'

'Absolutely not.' Bella grinned back.

'Shut-up now, it's been at least ten seconds since I kissed you.' James said quickly, before his lips met hers again. The thing that amazed Bella about James, was that he did and said things that no one else she knew would ever do.

James' blazer fell to the floor as he threw it off himself, and returned his hands to Bella's body. She felt the straps on her dress leaving her shoulders, and James pushed her dress down. His hands flowed over the skin that was now exposed, before tracing the straps of her bra. Bella felt James' lips leave hers, as he began kissing her neck. She tried to catch her breath in the gap she had.

Light suddenly began to fill the room, as the door squeaked open.

'Shit!' Bella couldn't help but exclaim. She pushed James behind her as she caught a glimpse of the face that was at the other side of the door. She grabbed her dress as she tried to pull it over her bra to cover up.

Andromeda was staring, wide-eyed and angry, back at her.

'What the hell are you doing?' Annie said loudly. A smirk appeared on her face. 'Or more like who?'

'Annie, just…' Bella paused to fight with her dress. 'just wait a minute! Shut the fucking door! Can't you see I'm not exactly decent?' Bella yelled, finally losing her patience.

'Alright! Keep your clothes on.' Annie mocked her, trying one last time to see who was behind her, before shutting the door. She was with someone. Bella didn't mention it because she wanted her to leave, but there was a boy with her. And Bella wanted to know who.

She exhaled as she felt James' hand creeping around her again.

'Get off!' She laughed, and grabbed his hands. 'We have to go!'

'I know,' James moaned, as he freed his hands and ran them through Bella's hair. 'I just don't want to.'

'I'm sure,' Bella sighed. She didn't want to go either, but they didn't have choice. 'I mean… you don't have to, James.' She turned around to face him. 'You could stay. My parents won't be back until tomorrow night… and if you don't mind how messy my bedroom is…'

'I'm not interested in your bedroom, Bella,' He kissed her cheek. 'I'm interested in you.'


	7. The Morning After

Bella woke up in the morning with the sudden feeling that she'd done something very, _very_ wrong. She sat up and looked over to the other side of her bed. Nothing. Just sheets and pillows. Normal. She sat staring at it, confused. She knew James had stayed, but where was he? She got up and ran her hands through her hair as it tried to tangle its way around her face. The door opened and Bella nearly jumped a mile. James grinned back at her.

'Where were you? Please tell me no one saw you!' Bella began panicking. She really hadn't thought this through. If one of her sisters saw him, there'd be hell up.

'No! Calm down!' He laughed, placing his hands on her shoulders so she looked him in the eyes. 'I was being stealthy.'

'Whatever,' Bella muttered, shrugging him off her. 'You're gonna have to use the fireplace in the kitchen and go by Floo Powder – I can't risk the neighbours seeing you leave.' She told him stiffly.

James looked somewhat hurt at her tone of voice. 'Oh,' He replied quietly. 'alright then.'

Bella turned back to look at him. 'I know you're bitter about last night.' She said abruptly.

'What?'

'You're bitter about what happened last night.'

'No, I'm not!' James argued angrily. 'Why would I be bitter? I'm _glad_ about what happened!'

Bella glared at him. Her eyes spoke volumes for her. She didn't need to speak.

'I'll leave.' James said quickly. Bella sighed. She hadn't meant to be mean to him, because what if he wasn't bitter about it? What if he was really glad about it?

'James, don't go.' She tried to make it sound sincere. 'I didn't mean it.'

He turned around with a small smile on his face. He knew she'd say that – that's why he threatened to leave. He pulled her closer to him and kissed her cheek.

'I really quite like you, Bella.' He said to her quietly.

'Thanks, James,' She laughed at his honesty. 'I quite like you, too.' James grinned at her. But they were both thinking the same thing – there was no way this could work when they got back to school.

'But,' Bella continued. 'there's absolutely no point in telling each other these things because we can't do anything with them.' She said it so lightly, as if they were discussing something trivial. James sighed. 'Let's not think about the future. We ought to concentrate on the present.' He forced a smile and began searching for his shirt. Bella smirked as she watched his body moving; his muscles bending and curving around him. She bit her lip.

'You could help, you know,' He said to her, without turning around. 'I can feel you looking at me.' He stopped speaking as he felt her hands slip into the back pockets of his jeans. 'And now I can feel you touching me.' He laughed. James turned around and placed Bella's hands on his bare shoulders, so he could pick her up and spin her around. She kissed him as he gently lowered her to the floor, his hands weaving their way into her hair.

A knock on the door broke them apart. Bella stared at James, wide-eyed.

'You up, Bella?' It was Narcissa.

'Hide!' Bella hissed. James began rummaging for something in his bag, as Bella gawped at him. What was he doing? He pulled out a cloak and flung it around himself. Bella gasped at what she saw. James' body disappeared beneath the cloak, it became completely transparent. James winked at her before he threw the cloak over his head, his whole being seemingly disappearing.

Bella opened the door. Narcissa looked pristine. Her blonde hair was straight and not a single hair out of place; her make-up untouched and fresh. She smiled at her sister.

'Well, you look rough.' Narcissa stated.

'Thanks for that.' Bella said flatly. 'You don't.'

Narcissa giggled in the girly fashion that she did. 'I know.' She flicked her hair over her shoulder as if to demonstrate this fact.

'What do you want?' Bella asked her directly, her tone possibly a little harsh.

'I only wanted to ask how your night went… we usually just have a catch up…' Narcissa looked hurt by this sudden harsh tone. Bella sighed.

'We will, Cissy,' Bella told her, forcing a kind smile. 'later, okay? I'm tired now… and my head hurts.'

Narcissa nodded slowly. 'Sorry, Bella.'

'It's alright,' Bella smirked. 'don't apologise. It's a sign of weakness.'

'It's a sign of _human_ weakness, Bella. They're different.'

Bella shook her head and shut the door again, as Narcissa began to make her way back down the stairs.

Bella felt a slight draught as James' cloak whirled around his as he swung it off like a cape. Bella raised an eyebrow at his pretentiousness. James chuckled to himself at her un-amused expression.

'That's an Invisibility Cloak, isn't it?' Bella asked him, slightly disbelieving of it.

James nodded. 'It is.'

Bella shook her head and sat down on her bed. Surely it couldn't be _the _Invisibility Cloak. That would be absurd. It must have been a replica, a cheap imitation. Surely.

'It's not real though, is it?' She questioned, again. 'I mean, it's just a copy of it.'

'What?' James appeared remotely hurt by this accusation. 'Of course it's real! My dad gave it to me when I started Hogwarts. I mean, it's a bit small now, but it still works just as well.'

'But… I mean,' Bella paused as her thoughts ran wild in her mind. 'It can't possibly be the real thing… from the story… can it?'

James handed her the cloak. 'See if you can find a reason why not.'

Bella let her hands roam over the material of the cloak. It was a black and brownish colour, and it felt like velvet. She slipped her hand underneath it, and watched it disappear and re-appear when she removed it. It looked aged and worn – and absolutely nothing that would make it seem anything other than the real thing.

'So this is… this is the Cloak of Invisibility? Originally given to the third brother?' Bella's voice became soft and vulnerable, as she let her mind speak freely.

'The very same.' James replied calmly. 'If you believe in those things, of course.'

'I didn't…' Bella began. 'But now? I'm not so sure. Do you believe it?'

'Completely.' James told her, unashamed of believing in what was supposed to be merely a children's fairy tale.

'Ever seen the Elder Wand or the Resurrection Stone, though?'

'No,' James shook his head. 'there'd be no proof even if I had. Why'd you think I can just keep that around with no one batting an eyelid? Because there's no proof that it's genuine. It's all down to believing it is.'

Bella nodded in agreement and passed James his cloak back.

'And besides,' He continued. 'the wand and the stone could be anywhere, couldn't they? Anywhere in the world by now. There's no way anyone would be able to posses all three. It would take them longer than a lifetime to find them.'

'I heard that there's a man working on something similar to the Resurrection Stone,' Bella remembered suddenly. 'I heard my father talking about him, saying that he was causing trouble because no one was certain whether it was legal or not. It just isn't illegal, but it might not be fully legal, either,' She paused as James' face became more interested by the second. 'and he's trying to create a stone that will produce and elixir that can give you everlasting life – provided you keep drinking the elixir, of course. Flamel I think his name is.'

'Really?' James breathed. 'That's amazing!'

'I know,' Bella smirked. 'anyway, you probably better get your things, James. Narcissa will be back soon if I don't go and find her. I'll have to make something up about last night, as well.'

'Especially seeing as Andromeda will be asking you who you were half-naked with in her bedroom.' James muttered, as he buttoned up his shirt.

'Oh God, I'd forgotten about that!' Bella ran her hand through her hair in slight frustration. 'Whatever I say will be the wrong thing.'

'Don't worry about it,' James said soothingly. 'I'm sure whatever you'll say will be fine. She's hardly going to go hunting around for the truth, is she?'

'You clearly don't know her as well as you think.' Bella smirked.

'Aw, I don't wanna go, Bells.' James moaned, throwing his bag to the side of the closed door, and sitting next to her on her bed. 'Can't I just stay here? I'll live in your wardrobe, or under your bed… or in your bed.'

Bella giggled and shook her head. 'Sorry, James.' She gave him a quick kiss. 'Your parents might wonder where you are.'

He nodded and stood up again, picking up the cloak. 'Might as well put this on, if you don't want me to be seen.'

'Andromeda would kill me.' Bella sighed, as she watched James disappear under the cloak once more. His bag then followed him under the cloak. Bella smiled in the direction she'd last seen James, before opening the door, and assuming he was following her.

She didn't even know why she was acting so cautious, no one could see James, so there was no reason to act suspicious. The only problem would be if someone came in while James was leaving through the fireplace. That could get awkward. She opened the kitchen door and peered her head around. Empty. Perfect. She walked into the room and waited a moment.

'James?' She hissed. It was beginning to get on her nerves that she didn't know where he was. A glass fell off the kitchen table.

'Shit!' She heard James' voice issue from that direction. Bella rolled her eyes and shut the door. She approached the glass and put her hand out in front of her, and as she suspected, she felt the material of the cloak. She whipped it off James. He spun around.

'Sorry,' He grinned, pushing the fragments of glass under the table with his foot.

'Don't worry about it,' Bella aimed her hand over the glass. It flew up towards the table again, and began sticking itself back together again. James' jaw dropped.

'Bloody hell.' James breathed. 'That's a neat trick.'

'Thanks,' Bella smirked.

'So you don't even need your wand to do stuff like that?' James was still awestruck over it, even as Bella replied with such collectedness.

'Not for the simple things,' Bella shrugged. 'Slughorn taught me some stuff last year about using magic without a wand.'

'Slughorn?'

'Yeah,' Bella nodded, not seeing anything wrong with this. 'he's my head of house.'

'Oh, yeah, of course.' James replied, realisation spreading over his face. 'Forgot about that. I'm used to going to Dumbledore for everything.'

'Hmm.' Bella didn't bother responding to that. Professor Dumbledore had never really liked her, and that feeling was entirely mutual. Transfiguration lessons were simply a doss lesson for her, as she refused to do any work in that lesson.

'He's not bad you know,' James had a weak attempt at persuading her.

'You ought to know better than to try and change my mind.' She laughed. 'It doesn't happen often.'

'Alright, alright, just saying,' James beamed at her. 'I'll just go then…'

'_Yes_,' Bella told him forcefully, but still with a smile. James put on sad expression. Bella simply raised her eyebrow. She gave in and smiled at him, then kissed his cheek. 'Go on, then!'

'Fine!' James laughed. He grabbed his bag and the cloak, and stood in the fireplace. Bella held out the Floo Powder pot to him. He took a handful of the silvery powder, and dropped it at his feet.

'Godric's Hollow.' And he was gone.

Bella exhaled and smiled to herself. Even she, who was so good at hiding things, could not deny her feelings for James Potter. But she'd try, and try _so_ hard.

She decided she would go and see Narcissa after all, she did actually enjoy their catch-up chats. And she felt a twinge of guilt about being so snappy with her earlier. She flicked her hand towards the kettle, and it began to boil, then empty the contents into two mugs. She picked up the cups as the hot liquid began to turn chocolate-like. Perfect.

Bella picked up the cups and made her way to Narcissa's bedroom, gently kicking the door open with her foot. She saw her sister curled up on her bed, reading a book. She looked up at her and smiled, shutting the book.

'Peace offering?' Bella grinned at her as she handed her the hot chocolate.

'Accepted.' Narcissa smiled back, taking a sip. Bella dragged the chair from the window closer to the bed and sunk down into it.

'Good night then? That Malfoy kid treating you right?'

'Absolutely,' Narcissa answered both questions, accompanied by her girly giggle. 'he's lovely.' She concluded. Bella simply nodded at her, waiting for more information. None came.

'Oh.' She said finally.

'I don't know why you have such an issue with him. He's a really nice guy, he comes from a good family…'

'He's seems like the kind of guy who always gets what he wants, that's all.' Bella voiced her opinion.

'What do you mean?'

'You are the most naïve person I've ever met.' Bella said quietly.

'I still don't get you…'

Bella sighed and just spat it out. 'He seems like the type of guy who will get his own way with _you_. Get all close to you and seem really nice – then next thing you know you're pregnant and he's nowhere to be found.'

'Bella!' Narcissa gasped. Bella couldn't help but smirk at her innocent reaction. 'I'm _thirteen_!'

She shrugged. 'Means nothing.'

'Ugh,' Narcissa shivered. 'well, _anyway_, Lucius is a really nice guy and I really like him… whatever you think about him.'

'Good,' Bella decided. 'you're standing up for yourself.'

'Yes,' Narcissa's voice dwindled and simply became a mumble, all the previous fire she had suddenly gone. 'And what about you then? I heard Annie complaining that you were in her room with a guy…?' Narcissa turned the tables on her sister.

'Oh…' Bella remembered that she'd forgotten to think of something. 'Right, yeah.'

'Come on then,' Narcissa probed. 'who was it?'

'I…' Bella stammered, trying to make it look like it was embarrassment rather than nerves. 'I made a stupid mistake and I shouldn't have.'

'That's not like you.'

'To make mistakes?'

'To admit them,' Narcissa corrected her. 'but who was it? It's not like I'm going to spread gossip about my own sister.'

'I guess not.' Bella sighed. She wanted to tell her sister the truth, and she knew she wouldn't mind. But there was just something stopping her, and she couldn't put her finger on it. 'Don't judge me.'

'I won't.' She promised.

Bella took one final chance to argue with herself. The part of her that wanted her to be honest with her sister was putting up a hard battle.

'James Potter.' Bella said in tone near a whisper. Narcissa didn't move. She was frozen starring at her sister.

'When you said you did something stupid… I thought… I mean, I didn't think it could be…'

'I didn't do something stupid,' Bella said quickly. 'I had half a mind to tell you it was Roddy. _That_ would have been a stupid thing to do.'

Narcissa gaped at her. 'And getting off with James Potter isn't stupid? What if Sirius finds out? What if he tells someone? Most of our house would turn against you like _that_!' She snapped her fingers for effect. Bella rolled her eyes; her sister was being melodramatic.

'No one's gonna find out.'

'So you didn't sleep with him then?'

'What? No!'

'So, he's not the person that spent the night in your room, then?'

'_What_?' Bella spat. He said no one saw him! Narcissa raised her eyebrows at her sister. 'How did you know?' She caved.

'I heard you talking this morning, before I came in. I heard voices – so I listened. I knew you were with someone, I just couldn't place the voice.'

'Okay, he stayed over,' Bella gave in again. If there was one person who could always appeal to her better side, it was her little sister. 'but I didn't sleep with him. Nothing like that happened. Honestly.' She laughed as a doubtful expression crept onto her sister's face.

'Now why don't I believe you?' Narcissa smirked.

'Because under any other circumstance I would have done. I know that. You know that. But I didn't. And besides, would it really have been the best idea for _me_ to lose my virginity to James Potter? Someone of my standing, to lose it to him? I don't think so.' That was why Bella had accused James of being bitter about it. She assumed that the only reason he agreed to stay over was because he thought he'd sleep with her. Bella never really had any intention of it, but the thought had only occurred to her in the morning that James might not have seen it that way.

'Now, that I believe.' Narcissa agreed. 'And come off it – you can't seriously be a virgin, Bella.'

Bella raised her hand. 'I swear.' She grinned. 'I might come over like a slut, but I'm not.' She laughed.

Narcissa laughed. 'I'd know all about that.'

Bella sat back, feeling somewhat relieved that she'd told her sister the truth. However, that feeling was still sitting at the back of her mind that she'd rather not have admitted it. She didn't like the idea that someone else knew that, even if she'd trust that person with her life.


	8. Back To Hogwarts

Bella was never too good at packing. Her idea of it was simply throwing everything she thought she might need at a case, and hoping it would all fit. It never did. She just ended up with a pile of clothes and books overflowing out of a maroon Hogwarts trunk, the lid hanging limply behind the stack, unable to cope with the load. Bella sighed and drew her wand, aiming it vaguely at the case.

'Compresso.' She said flatly, as the pile submerged slightly. A couple more attempts at it and everything was pressed into the case. Bella slammed the lid down and gave it a few pushes before she heard the lid click into place. She fasted the lock and heaved the case off her bed, and it landed on the hard wood floor with a _thud_. Bella growled to herself and drew her wand once more. She levitated the case from the ground. To Bella's surprise, levitating it didn't make it as light as she thought it would. Her arm ached as she held her wand out in front of her, the case bobbing along the staircase to the hallway below.

Andromeda's bedroom door opened and Bella heard her sister swear to herself as she nearly walked into the flying suitcase. She rolled her eyes and prepared herself for the storm she was about to step into.

'What the hell, Bellatrix?' Andromeda began, glaring at her sister.

Bella raised her eyebrows. 'What? I'm just taking my case downstairs! It's not my fault if you don't look where you're going!'

'Oh, I'm sorry for not anticipating flying suitcases every time I open the door!' Andromeda shouted back, her hair whipping itself behind her, even with no breeze.

'Here's a tip, Annie,' Bella started, her voice quieter. 'you don't live in the boring little world that your mudblood friends come from! _You_ are a pureblood, and as such, you ought to anticipate _magic_ everywhere you go!'

'Bellatrix, don't you dare start about that! You don't know any of my friends. It's not my problem that you don't know what nice people, and _gifted_ people they are!'

'Gifted? Is that what you're calling it? I'd have called it being shit at magic.'

'_Bellatrix_!' Annie was screaming now. She usually fought back, but not like this. Bella took a step back, trying to analyse why her sister was suddenly so ticked off about this. Maybe Bella had just tried it one too many times and Annie had snapped. It didn't seem so likely.

'It's that guy, isn't it?' Bella said suddenly, remembering something she'd seen at the party. 'That mudblood you brought to the party. The one who didn't know what the mood potion was! I saw it turn pink when you were holding it. Mum and dad would literally disown you if you started seeing him. You know that, right?' Bella sniggered, loving how she could make her sister squirm.

Annie's expression suddenly changed. 'Not sure it's me who should be worrying seeing the wrong guy.' She said simply, a smug smile appearing on her face.

'What do you mean by that?' Bella shot back, any trace of her previous happiness completely vanished.

'Nothing,' Annie shrugged, before bringing her eyes up to meet her sister's. 'what could I possibly mean by it?'

Bella shook her head and followed her suitcase downstairs. She tried her hardest to dismiss what Annie had just said, but she couldn't quite push it out of her mind. Narcissa wouldn't have told her, would she? Bella knew that Narcissa got on better with Annie than she did, but neither of them would say they got on well with her. Either that or Annie had seen James. But he said he'd been careful and no one had seen him… Bella ran her hand through her hair and ordered herself to stop thinking about it.

Platform Nine and Three Quarters was always busy. The only times it was every active was during the start and end of terms at Hogwarts. Bella sighed as she saw the buzz before her. She hated coming when it was like this. All the hassle of dealing with so many people all at once. She'd much rather it was quiet. Bella hated this trip even more because she was trying her best to look out for Roddy Lestrange, and to sprint in the opposite direction if she saw him.

Luckily, the first person Bella saw was the familiar, and tired, face of Evan Rosier. He was in some kind of whispered discussion with someone, just near the back of the platform. Bella casually snuck past him to get on the very last door of the train. She'd already lost Narcissa when she saw Olivia Rookwood.

'Did you speak to him?' Evan asked the other guy quietly.

'Yeah,'

'And?'

The other guy shook his head. 'Nothing. I hinted at it, but he wasn't having any of it. And I didn't want to push it too far…'

'No,' Evan agreed. 'that's probably best. But if he's said he's going to do it for people as close as we are… then why hasn't he?'

'Maybe he hasn't worked out how to do it yet?'

'Yeah, maybe.' Evan sighed. 'Anyway, I'd better get on, I've got to go to the Prefect's compartment.'

'He'll like you less if you think you're Mr Perfect and that.' The other guy teased. Evan smirked and left him standing on the platform. Bella kept walking on and picked up her pace, having slowed down to listen to their conversation. She was slightly confused about it. Who were they talking about… and what was 'he' planning to do to them? It sounded odd to say the least.

The door of the compartment on Bella's left swung open of its own accord.

'Ciao Bella.'

She smiled to herself and turned to enter the compartment. Barty Crouch was sprawled out across the whole of one side of the bench inside, his suitcase haphazardly perched on the rack above him.

'Hello handsome.' Bella said back with a smile. This was their greeting. Always. Barty had been a friend virtually since they started Hogwarts, and he'd been particularly amazed when he found out that Bella meant beautiful in Italian. And so, Bella would always translate the masculine version whenever she was greeted in this manner.

He smirked and gestured for her to sit down. She accepted his request and sat on the opposite bench.

'I didn't mean there.' He grinned at her. She raised her eyebrows. Barty lifted his legs up and stared back at her. Bella took a moment and got up again, placing herself neatly in the space Barty had left for her. He put his legs back over her once she'd sat down.

'Good summer?' He asked her casually, dragging his mop-like dark hair off his face.

'Yeah,' She replied slowly. 'where were you? I wanted to invite you to the party we had, but I didn't know where to write to.'

'Here and there.' He shrugged. 'I had to get away from my dad's place. I stayed at the Leaky Cauldron for a while, then I ran out of money. Mr Borgin let me crash in the backroom of his shop for a few weeks, provided to did a bit of work, obviously.' He said it all so casually. Bella's eyes had got wider the more he said. She was always concerned for him, but she knew better than to try and convince him to stop. Barty didn't have a good relationship with his father, and since his mother died when he was younger, he spent most of his holidays trying to be anywhere else but home. In fact, he didn't even refer to it as home. It was his dad's house. Not his.

'You could have stayed with me, you know. My parents would have let you stay… rather than staying in the Leaky Cauldron, for Merlin's sake! That place is horrific.' Bella said, trying to let her voice show her genuine concern.

'It's not that bad,' Barty smirked back at her. 'They gave me free drinks sometimes, so it's not all bad.'

'Oh God. You'll never change, will you?'

'Hell no.' He grinned back, pulling her into a hug.

The door slid open, and the sullen, angry face of Roddy Lestrange greeted them. Bella glared at him, but didn't move. And Barty loved to play games too much to miss Roddy's expression getting more and more aggressive.

'Didn't realise I'd be interrupting a special moment. My apologies.' He growled at the pair of them. Bella bit her lip trying not to laugh. She let her hands fall back to her as she let go of her friend. When no one replied, Roddy took it as an invitation to keep talking. 'So this is how it is, is it? You finish with me and start seeing _him_ this fast?'

'Fast?' Bella spat back at him, unable to stop herself. 'Fast? It's been about two months since we broke up!'

'Well, all I'm saying is that I've got a bit more class than to just jump into another relationship for no reason.'

Bella was about to reply, when she felt Barty's hand creeping up her back. She hid a smirk. 'Don't talk to me about class, Lestrange.' She bit back. 'I'm just sorry you're naïve enough to think you have it. You want to get into a family history debate?'

Roddy scowled. 'Not with you, I don't. Him? Absolutely. His father works at the Ministry, for Merlin's sake!'

'Yeah, I know,' Bella continued, before she was interrupted by Barty.

'My father has got nothing to do with this, Lestrange. He's got as much class as a Gryffindor, so you can't argue with me about that.' Barty said, a sudden angry twinge in her voice, that even sent a shiver down Bella's spine.

'Coming from a Ravenclaw, that's rich.' Roddy scoffed.

'Get out.' Bella told him suddenly.

'What?'

'Get out!' She repeated harshly, perfectly ready to stand up and throw him out herself. She suddenly got the sudden feeling of anger, like a small sip of what she had felt that night at her cousins' house, when the windows had shattered in the drawing room. Roddy's eyes widened with panic for a second as he saw Bella's dark eyes almost flash red.

'I was about to leave anyway.' He said in a small voice, before slowly backing out of the doorway and slipping out of sight.

'Cool off, Bells.' Barty laughed, stroking her hair with his hand.

'Yeah… sorry.' She muttered, slightly scared about her outburst.

'I'm kidding, of course,' Barty grinned, then kissed her cheek in a purely friendly fashion. 'it's kind of exciting.' She looked back at him slightly sarcastically.

'Don't start,' Bella laughed. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her almost onto his lap.

'You're a pretty sexy girl, Bells.' He smirked.

'I know, thanks,' She replied with a giggle, trying to free herself from his grasp.

Two girls appeared in the open doorway. Lucy Rosier shook her blonde head at her friends, and the girl next to her simply laughed.

'You just can't keep off her, can you?' The other girl grinned, a strong Welsh accent slipping with her words. Abby Hartford. Another one of Bella's best friends. She never really put in an appearance in the holidays, she was always off on some extravagant trip with her family. Her parents were very wealthy, even by Bella's standards, but her grandparents were even richer, and they liked to see the world.

Abby and Lucy sat themselves down opposite the other two.

'Oh,' Barty continued, finally releasing Bella. 'I ran into someone who used to go to Hogwarts while I was working for Mr Borgin. Tom something… Riddle, I think.' All three girls suddenly turned to stare at him. 'What?' He asked, confused as to why they had all become so interested.

'Tom Riddle?' Bella repeated.

'The actual Tom Riddle?' Lucy agreed. 'As in, ex-captain of the Slytherin Quidditch team, Tom Riddle?'

'Yes.' Barty replied slowly, still unsure as to their interest.

'Wow.' Abby breathed, glancing back at her friends to share their sudden excitement. 'That's amazing!'

'How? He's just some guy. Just thought I'd mention it because Bella was on the Quidditch team while he was Captain.'

'Yeah,' Bella agreed. 'and I could barely speak while he was around!'

Lucy let out a small squeak of excitement. 'He's so hot…' She breathed.

'Oh God,' Barty sighed. 'what the hell have I done telling you this. Don't go stalking him, will you?' He looked round at the girls. 'Any of you. He seemed like a bit of a dodgy guy, if I'm honest.'

'Don't be.' Abby told him, her voice slippery like honey. 'Who cares if he's dodgy? He's gorgeous.'

'Agreed.' Bella grinned back at her.

'I'm going.' Barty announced, not really certain it would matter to them anyway. No one seemed interested, as they continued to witter away about Tom Riddle. He cleared his throat. '_I'm going_.'

'Oh,' Bella looked at him briefly. 'okay, see you later.'

Barty rolled his eyes and left the compartment quickly, slamming the door behind him. The girls didn't even notice.

'I can't believe he saw Tom Riddle.' Lucy said once more. 'I mean… wow.'

'I know…' Abby's voice simply trailed away.

'Hey,' Bella interrupted suddenly. 'Abby, you can't talk! Aren't you meant to be going out with Matt Flint?'

Abby waved her comment away. 'Yeah. But if Tom Riddle swooped by, I'd happily forget all about him.'

Bella laughed at her for a moment, then stopped. 'I wonder why Barty thought he was dodgy though… I mean, he was Head Boy. Didn't he get the Services to the School Award, as well?'

'Yeah,' Lucy agreed, a sudden confused expression on her face. 'he was sort of a golden boy, wasn't he?'

Abby was still staring out of the window dreamily, watching the scenery pass her by. Bella shook her head at her. No wonder this girl was dating Matt Flint – they were almost perfect for each other in every which way possible. Abby said it herself, she'd drop Matt like a hot cauldron if Tom Riddle turned up, and Bella knew for a fact that Matt would do exactly the same thing. Bella knew Matt well because he played Quidditch for the Slytherin team, same as Bella did, and she heard all the changing room conversations. Sometimes the boys would talk to the girls over the partition- other times Bella would just listen in. Matt wasn't exactly the most faithful boyfriend, but then again, Abby wasn't the most faithful girlfriend, either.

To Bella's surprise, the door slid open once more and Matt Flint appeared. Bella smirked to herself.

'Hey, babe.' He addressed Abby, disregarding all others.

'Hi, honey,' Bella got their first, as her and Lucy burst out laughing straight after.

Matt grinned at her. 'Hey, sexy,' He turned back to Abby, who was now wearing a more than sour expression. 'd'you wanna go? There's a spare compartment across there.' He nodded towards the other end of the train.

'Suppose so.' Abby muttered. '_ceiliog dwp_.' She said something in Welsh under her breath.

'What?' Matt asked, apparently thinking he'd missed her saying something to him.

'Nothing,' Abby smiled sweetly.

'What does it mean?' Lucy whispered to her.

'Stupid cock.' Abby beamed back. Lucy and Bella started laughing again, as Abby shut the compartment door behind her.

The conversation moved swiftly on as the train progressed. The girls began talking about guys again, as Bella sat slightly un-easily, her mind bringing James Potter to the forefront.

'So, did you see Roddy again in the holidays?' Lucy asked. She didn't come to Bella's party, as she was on holiday with her parents. Her brother didn't go. Bella made a mental note to add that to the list of suspicious things going on with Evan Rosier.

'Yeah,' Bella sighed. 'unfortunately.'

'You're gonna end up back with him eventually.' Lucy commented casually.

Bella spat back at her. 'No, I'm not! Not a chance in hell.'

'Oh? So you're going to get with who, exactly? Barty?' Lucy said it with a smile on her face, but she really was considering it as a possibility for her best friend.

'What? No,' Bella giggled. 'of course not. He's a friend. That's all.'

'You sure?'

'Absolutely.'

'He does seem to like touching you…' Lucy observed once more.

Bella mused over this. 'Well, yeah… but in a really innocent, jokey way. He doesn't mean it like… sexually.' Lucy held back a laugh.

'If you say so,' She decided, although not entirely convinced. 'so… who are you seeing now then? I mean… I'm so used to you being with Roddy, I can't really imagine you with anyone else. I always saw you two getting married or something.'

Bella let out a harsh laugh. 'Married? Are you joking? I'd never have _any _freedom! He'd want a housewife, most certainly. And can you really imagine me staying in to cook and clean all day?'

'Well, no, not really.' Lucy smirked.

'And he's always said he'd want children.' Bella added, disgust lacing her voice. 'And that's like my nightmare. Staying in and looking after small kids? I don't think so.'

'No… I suppose not.' Lucy seemed rather disheartened by this. 'I guess it's with you guys being together so much for so long… it's going to be a bit shocking to see you with someone else.'

'Maybe you won't see me with someone else. Maybe I'll just be single for a bit.'

Lucy smirked at her. 'You? Really?'

'Yeah! What's wrong with that?'

'And by single, you mean getting off with a load of boys.'

'Of course.' Bella grinned. 'You know me too well!'

'First prey?'

'Not sure yet…' Bella pretended to genuinely think it over. 'What do you think?'

'Hmm…' Lucy thought. 'There's that Ravenclaw guy, what's his name? The one who's their Seeker?'

'Chesney?'

'That's the one.'

Chesney Larkin was a very good looking guy, Bella had to admit it. He was a very kind and considerate guy, too. And that was exactly why Bella would never want anything to do with him. He was far too nice for her taste. She thought about James. He was nice in a different way. He was nice in a way that wasn't nice. He was just the guy for her, Bella decided. He was perfect in every which way. One problem – he was a Gryffindor. And that was the only problem.


	9. New Term, Old Feelings

The sorting began with very little activity. Bellatrix sat at the Slytherin table wearing a bored expression, and stabbing the table with her fork. She had Abby on one side and Narcissa on the other. Both of the pair on either side of her were also sitting with their respective partners. Bella felt somewhat alone as she watched them, unable to make herself focus on the sorting. As Matt Flint slipped his hand under the table, Bella forced herself to concentrate on watching the new students be sorted.

Professor Merrythought called out another name. Bella stared, as a small boy with ginger hair stepped up to the hat. Bella yawned and put her head on the table. She managed to turn off for a while, but the over-audible shout of '_Gryffindor_!' made her lift her head up and glare at the hat. Slytherin hadn't had one successful sorting this time round, not one of the kids looked like they could be talented Quidditch players. Bella and Jamie Montague always exchanged glances and a few words while the sorting was going on; labelling potential players. This time they did no such thing. Bella took a glanced across the room and caught Barty's eyes over on the Ravenclaw table. He was sat with some of his mates from their year. Bella didn't know their names, it would never matter to her. He grinned at her, then one of his mates decided to draw a heart in the air. Bella rolled her eyes and looked away once more. The Sorting and the feast finished all too slowly for Bella's liking. It got to the end of the feast when Professor Dippet stood up to address the school. Bella assumed this would be his usual start of term speech, but when he started speaking, she realised it was not.

'As most of you will know,' he began. 'I will not be serving another term at Hogwarts.' Bella sunk slightly. She'd forgotten about that. And there was only one person she knew Dippet would have chosen to replace him. She was not impressed about it, and was silently willing it not to come true. 'But, I will not be leaving you in the hands of anyone I do not see fit for the position. And so, I will say a hearty welcome to our new first years, and a good luck to the rest of you, before I introduce you to your new Headmaster,' he paused and glanced behind him. 'Professor Dumbledore.'

The Gryffindor table erupted into applause and cheering. The Slytherin table remained almost deadly silent. Bella hung her head in her hands. This meant a new Transfiguration teacher, too. She could only hope it was someone who might actually not persecute the Slytherins as much as Dumbledore had. However, it occurred to Bella afterwards, that whoever was the new Transfiguration teacher, meant that they would also be head of Gryffindor house. Bella sighed as Professor Dumbledore began addressing the school. She didn't listen to any of it, as a symbol of her distaste for it. As soon as they were able, Bella left the Great Hall.

'Hey, Bella,' She heard a voice behind her as she made her way into the Dungeons. She was alone, and hadn't minded until now. Right then, she deeply wished she was back with Abby and Matt, rather than face what she was about to. She spun around to find Roddy Lestrange beaming back at her. Apparently he had forgotten their slight argument on the train. 'Can we talk?' He asked eagerly.

'No.' Bella answered quickly. Although, it seemed like there was only one answer.

'Okay, I'll talk to you a bit later on.' And with that Roddy swooped off in the opposite direction. Bella glared after him, fully aware he wasn't even looking at her. She shook her head and walked into the common room.

Music was blaring out from nowhere, and people were dancing and leaping around all over the place. Bella smiled at the scene. This was what it was always like on the first night back, and she was glad of it. She would have loved to join in, and usually would have, but tonight, she made her way straight to the dorms. Luckily, now that everyone was enjoying the festivities downstairs, she could have a bit of peace and quiet in the dorms.

She found Lucy in the dorms, sitting on her bed, writing inside a black, leather book.

'Hey, Lucy.' Bella said with a sigh. Lucy looked up and shook her hair out of her eyes. She managed a small smile. Bella took a second glance, as it appeared her friend had been crying. On this second look she realised that it was true, and mascara was smeared down Lucy's cheeks. 'What's wrong?'

Lucy shook her head and bit down her bottom lip, trying to stop herself crying again. Bella sat down on Lucy's bed and put her arm around her in an attempt to comfort her.

'Evan,' Lucy whimpered. 'he was talking to some guy earlier… and…' Lucy took a deep breath and tried to even out her breathing. 'They were planning something, and I didn't know what it was at f-first…' She took another breath. Bella got a strange feeling that she knew what Lucy was about to say. 'They were talking about dropping out.' Lucy concluded. Bella tried to look surprised, although she wasn't sure how convincing it had been. She knew there was more to this story though, and she was positive that Lucy would have heard something about it, even just a tiny bit.

'Is that all, though?' Bella asked her. 'I mean, didn't they say why?'

Lucy stared at her, almost accusingly. 'Yeah,' The look in her eyes was gone almost as soon as it had come, like Lucy wasn't even consciously aware she'd done it. 'they kept referring to someone, but never said his name – they just said _him_. And whoever he is, they wanted to drop out because he wanted them to. Because he wanted… he wanted,' Lucy shut her eyes and inhaled. 'he wanted to make sure he had their undivided attention.'

Bella remained silent this time. That's what she'd been waiting to hear. Whoever it was that Evan and his friend were talking about, wanted to make sure they were completely loyal to him. It sounded important… risky, even.

'Bella,' Lucy began again, her voice quiet and reserved. 'I think he's into something he shouldn't be.'

'I don't know enough to comment,' Bella decided to be diplomatic. 'don't jump to conclusions, Lucy. Just wait until you've got all the facts. He might not even be serious about what he said.' Lucy didn't seem convinced, but nodded all the same.

'I just want to know.' Lucy concluded. 'Whoever it is that Evan's been listening to – he must be bloody important for Evan to pack in his education. You know as well as I do how much he wants to get NEWT's so he can work in the Department of Mysteries. He's always wanted to do that.' Lucy breathed in once more, not willing to lose her composure after working so hard to find it again.

'I know, Lucy, I know,' Bella agreed slowly. 'and I'm sure it's not what it seems like. After all, we don't know the whole story.'

'You're right.' Lucy said. 'I'm going downstairs. Gonna see if I can cheer myself up a bit. You coming?'

'Wasn't going to… I'm trying to avoid Roddy. He said we'd talk later.'

'Oh,' Lucy replied sympathetically. 'what about?'

Bella shrugged. 'Don't know, don't care.'

'You do care… _really_.'

'I actually don't.'

'Fine,' Lucy smirked. 'lie to yourself.' Bella grinned at her, glad that Lucy was back to her ordinary self.

Bella got up off Lucy's bed and went over to her own, opening the lid on her trunk. As she'd expected, most of the things inside it began overflowing and escaping to the floor. She shook her head. She'd sort it out later. Bella threw out a few clothes onto her bed, until she found a pack of cigarettes. She pulled a box out of the multipack and shoved the rest into the drawer by her bed. Lucy raised her eyebrows.

'We haven't even been back a day,' She commented.

'So?'

'You're going to claim stress.'

'Yep.' Bella laughed. The girls had rules about smoking. You didn't just do it – there had to be a reason for it. They had three reasons; stress, social and post-Quidditch. Bella was currently the only one allowed to use the post-Quidditch reason, as Lucy didn't play. Bella made herself promise that whatever the situation was, she would never smoke or drink with less than a week before a Quidditch match. So when it came to the night after the match, she could claim the post-Quidditch reason for smoking.

Bella pocketed the box of cigarettes she was holding, and slipped her wand into the other pocket. Lucy smirked.

'Can I claim stress?' She asked with a laugh. Bella shrugged. She probably could. 'I don't really want to, though.' Lucy said, in after-thought.

'Have it your way, then.' Bella smirked, as she followed Lucy out of the dorms.

She lost Lucy in the common room, she wanted to stay with Abby and Matt, who were now sitting with Alex Higgs, who was looking very sorry for himself sitting with a couple. Lucy seemed more than happy to cheer him up. Bella politely declined the offer, and left the common room. She had no idea where she was going, as she wandered the darkened dungeons alone. She knew she'd run into a Prefect sooner or later, but that didn't matter. They'd be Slytherins down there anyway, so she'd be okay.

Bella passed a few Prefects, but they just politely said 'hello' and a quick 'how are you?' and let her on her way. It was partly because they'd never tell of a fellow Slytherin, but mostly because they wouldn't question a Black. In Slytherin family connections were very important, much more than it was in other houses.

She found the portrait she'd hoped to find. The occupant was asleep, so it was easy for Bella to gently ease open the portrait and climb through the passage without being noticed. This portrait passage led to the astronomy tower, but without going through the whole school and running into numerous Prefects.

Eventually she came to the top of the tower, the gentle night's breeze breathing past her. She took out a cigarette and lit it with her wand, then gratefully took a drag, thankful she'd made it this far without running into Roddy. As she watched the smoke swirl around her and be carried away on the wind, she didn't hear the footsteps behind her.

'It's bad for your health, you know.' She heard a smug voice. Bella smiled to herself and turned around. Greeting her was the glowing and smiling face of James Potter.

'I know,' Bella shrugged. 'but I choose to disregard it.' She took another drag and blew smoke in James' direction. He simply grinned at her.

'Are you gonna put it out?'

'Why?'

'So I can kiss you.'

Bella smirked at him and dropped the cigarette without even looking at it. The next thing she felt was James' lips on hers, like they'd not seen each other for years rather than weeks. Eventually, James broke away from her.

'I missed you,' He whispered, before he kissed her neck.

Bella couldn't help but giggle. 'Missed you, too.'

'You shouldn't.' He told her simply.

'I know.' Bella answered. 'But you're just as bad.'

James smirked. 'Tell me about it. I go for a week without seeing you, and I'm getting withdrawal.' He grinned and slipped his arms around Bella's waist. She couldn't help but smile at him.

'I was supposed to be talking to Roddy tonight.' Bella informed him. James gave her a look.

'What about?'

Bella shrugged. 'Dunno. He just wanted to talk.'

'He'll want to get back together with you.' James thought aloud.

'I don't care if he does. I don't want to get back together with him. I'd die of boredom.' Bella giggled.

'And besides,' James added. 'you're with me.'

'Am I?' Bella's eyes flashed to an unreadable state. Was she with James? She knew they could never publically show their feelings, so she'd always assumed James thought the same.

'I'd like to think so,' James replied with a slick smile. 'we're close enough.'

Bella stared at him for a minute, before un-hooking herself from his grasp. She leant against the wall, looking out over the grounds of the school.

'But James,' She began.

'Oh, don't start.' James interjected, then added a cheeky smirk.

'I'm serious,' Bella tried to put on a serious expression, but it didn't really work. She couldn't be serious when James was around. 'we both know how we feel about each other, but what are we meant to do with that? I mean, we can't be together, can we? We'd both get cast out… and there'd be no one but Hufflepuffs to accept us.'

'I've got friends in Hufflepuff.' James looked slightly hurt. Bella glared at him. He cleared his throat slightly nervously. 'But that's not the point, is it?' James said exactly what Bella wanted him to say.

'I mean, we can just do what we're doing, can't we?' James asked her. 'Just keep seeing each other like this? It's not hurting anyone.'

Bella nodded in slight agreement. 'So… are we…' Bella shook her head. She couldn't bring herself to say it.

'If you like.' James shrugged, knowing what she was going to say.

Bella sighed. She didn't want to say what she was about to. 'We can't.' She said simply. 'It would get complicated. And I can't deal with that. And I hate lying to my friends, which I've been doing a lot of lately.'

James tried to be sympathetic.

'And I hate lying to my sister.' Bella added sadly. Even though she'd been honest with Narcissa about letting James stay in her room, she hadn't told her the nature of their relationship. She felt guilty about it. The only person she ever felt guilt over, was her baby sister.

'You girls really are inseparable, aren't you?' James commented. Bella smiled at him. 'So,' James diverted the topic. 'are we just staying in this… friends with benefits type thing? Because I always said I'd never do that…'

'Friends with benefits?' Bella repeated. 'I thought you had to be friends for that to happen.' She gave him a cheeky smile. He beamed at her.

'Oh, yeah,' He replied slowly. 'no one even knows we're friends… this just gets better.'

Bella laughed, she couldn't help it. Her eyes darted over the grounds, and as they found the Quidditch pitch, she was reminded of something.

'Quidditch is going to be fun.' She grinned at James. He smirked. It hadn't dawned on him that he'd be playing against Bella. They were both Seekers, and they'd played in opposition since third year, but it had managed to escape James' memory.

'I'm still going to beat you.' James teased.

'No!' Bella laughed. 'You're not. Because our team is going to be unstoppable this year.'

Bella felt James' arm slip around her once more. She sank onto his chest, feeling glad of the warmth as a chill crept into the air. James kissed the top of her head.

'I'm kinda fascinated by your hair, Bells.' He whispered.

'Really? I hate it. It's untameable.'

'Like you.'

Bella didn't reply, she simply smiled to herself. She'd never thought about herself like that, but now he'd said it… he was right. James kissed her cheek.

'I think I'm magnetic.' Bella said.

'Huh?'

'You keep touching me.'

James hugged her to prove her right. 'Can't help it then. It's a scientific reaction.'

'Sure.' Bella giggled, straightening James' collar. He leant in and kissed her on the lips. Not for long, as a sudden _bang_ interrupted them.

They both turned to search for the source of the noise. The door to the astronomy tower had flung open and banged against the wall. Standing in the doorway was none other than Remus Lupin. Bella said a silent thanks that it wasn't Sirius.

'What… the… Hell…' Lupin breathed. James almost dropped Bella as he stared back at his friend, like she'd suddenly become unbearably hot.

'I just… it was… I mean…' James was lost for words, something incredibly rare.

'Bellatrix?' Lupin's tone had quickly turned from shock to boredom, as he turned to Bella for a more accurate string of words.

She glanced at James. He exhaled and waved his hand carelessly. He gave her a look that said _just tell him_. Bella shook her head, stuck for the right thing to say. How to define her relationship with James? They're just classified it as not friends with benefits. But what did that make it? Just benefits? That didn't even make sense.

'Or I'll just put it together myself.' Lupin said again. Bella rolled her eyes. Who did this guy think he was?

'So I'd guess,' Lupin continued. 'that you guys met each other at Will's party? And then it kicked off from there? And then you just continued your little activity?'

Bella clapped her hands. 'Oh, well done, Lupin. You're not even fucking close.' James sighed and stared back at his friend.

'Remus, what's this even got to do with you?' James said flatly.

'I'm just trying to look out for you,' He told him sincerely. '_Both_ of you.'

Bella snorted at his comment. He wanted to look out for her, too? Yeah, right.

'You're Sirius' cousin. No matter what he says, I think he'd be upset if something happened to you,' Lupin told her sternly. Bella shrugged. She wasn't sure about that. 'and if someone else saw you… even suspected for one minute that you two were together? You'd both be off your Quidditch teams before you can even protest.'

James didn't reply. He knew he was right. They hadn't announced the Quidditch Captains yet, but whoever it was would certainly not tolerate that. They always announced the Quidditch Captains after the first week of term, and they'd be told by their head of house prior to this. Both Bella and James desperately wanted to be Quidditch Captains of their teams. But they hadn't even considered, let alone discussed, the effect this would have.

James ran his hand through his hair and exhaled slowly, thinking through what he was going to stay. 'Remus, this is between me and Bella. I appreciate that you just trying to look out for us… but it's our thing. Yeah?'

Lupin stared at him for a moment. 'I know, I know. But at the same time, I just feel like because I know, I ought to give you some advice.'

'Thanks,' Bella interrupted before anyone else had the chance. 'but no thanks. I think we can handle this without any help, Lupin. You seemed like and alright guy before. Please don't change my opinion on you. And I realise that you feel some kind of loyalty to James, but can you please use that loyalty to keep quiet about this – rather than "advise"?' Bella seemed to shock both boys with her outburst. She smirked at their expressions.

'Er,' James tried to think of something to say.

'I'll be going then.' Bella told him, before turning back to Lupin. 'If you'll excuse me?' He politely stepped aside to let her pass.

The last thing Bella saw was James almost collapse over the wall, his face in his hands. She couldn't help but feel a little bit sorry for him… before her thoughts got the better of her and told him to grow up and grow a pair. Bella smiled to herself and made her way back to the common room.


	10. Captain

Sunlight crept around the curtains of the Slytherin dorms on Saturday morning. Bella rubbed her eyes and stared around. Everyone was still sleeping. Lucy was hugging her sheets close to her and smiling in her sleep, clearly not having nightmares about her brother dropping out of school. Abby was in the bed next to her, her head buried in her pillow, her blonde hair splaying out around her like spikes. The two other girls in her dorm, Izzie and Kathryn, we both asleep at the other end of the room. Bella got up and dressed quickly, still none of the dorm stirring. Bella had changed into her Quidditch kit; skinny jeans (though they weren't allowed), her tight long-sleeved black top, and the green Slytherin t-shirt that went on top. She draped her Quidditch cloak over her arm and left the room, picking up her boots as she left.

As she made her way out of the dungeon, she considered the outcomes of what was coming. They were announcing the Quidditch Captains today. It was tradition to announce it first in the headmaster's office, after a week had passed of the first term. Then it would be announced in a ceremony that night to the whole school. Bella exhaled as she tried to put aside how much she wanted this. It had been her dream ever since she started. She wasn't bothered about being a Prefect, or Head Girl. She knew she'd never get them because she was too forthright with her views, and too willing to do what she wanted, rather than what the school wanted. But Quidditch Captain? She could do that. She was a leader. Naturally.

Alex Higgs was waiting for her outside the golden phoenix stairway that welcomed them into what was now Professor Dumbledore's office. He grinned at her, his dark hair a mess around his eyes.

'Alright, Bella?'

She nodded, suddenly unable to speak from nerves. She tried to block them out. Alex smirked, somewhat happy that his competition was nervous, no matter how much of a friend she was.

'Where's Jamie?' Bella asked him, realising the absence of the only other candidate for Captaincy.

Alex shrugged. 'Hopefully he got cold feet.'

'Play nice.' Bella smirked at him. Alex and Jamie weren't enemies, as such, they just didn't particularly get on. They never had.

Bella gave one final glance around the corridor, before she stepped onto the phoenix stairs, Alex at her heels.

'Password?' The voice issued from nowhere – a voice Bella was only to familiar with. She'd been in the headmaster's office more times than she'd care to mention.

'Quidditch.' And the stairs started moving. The password was deliberately changed for that morning, to Quidditch, so that all the potential Captains could get in. They had time slots, per house, so that they wouldn't be alerted to the other Captains from other houses.

Professor Dumbledore sat in his newly acquired chair, looking more than comfortable. Bella scowled at him. It took a second to remember that this man was in charge of her fate in the Quidditch team, and put on a perfectly convincing pleasant smile. There were three chairs set out at the desk facing Dumbledore. Clearly Jamie wasn't here yet.

'Good morning,' Dumbledore addressed them almost professionally. 'please, sit down.'

Alex and Bella did as they were told, and sat down. Bella gave an almost sympathetic look to the empty chair where Jamie should have been. He would have thought he could get away with another five minutes in bed.

'I see we are one short.' Dumbledore observed aloud. Bella simply nodded. 'Should we start without him?'

'Take it he hasn't got it then?' Bella let her sugar-coated guard slip for a moment.

'Have I been so obvious?' Dumbledore smiled at her, but there was nothing behind it but distaste. Bella shrugged.

'Well,' He continued. 'I see it only fit that we carry on.' He smiled at the pair in front of him, and seeing that neither of them smiled back, he continued. 'I have been told you have both worked hard since you started the team… in your third year, was it?' They both remained silent, and Dumbledore assumed he'd got it right.

Before he could continue, the door squeaked open and Jamie poked his head around the door. His hair was all over the place, and his clothes looked like they'd been thrown on in a hurry.

'Sorry,' He muttered, as he took the only remaining seat in front of their headmaster.

'Not a problem,' Dumbledore tried his smile again on Jamie, who followed the example set by the others.

Dumbledore cleared his throat. 'As I was saying. You've all worked extremely hard, and I know how much you want this. But when I decided on the Captains of other teams – you will need someone who can lead without hesitation. Someone who will not falter under pressure. And most of all, someone who can ultimately, bring a team who have not won the Quidditch Cup for four years, into a solid victory.' He paused as his eyes met Bella's, a dark twinkle issuing from behind his glasses. 'A tall order.'

Bella couldn't help but glare at him. Tall order? Not a chance. They hadn't won for four years, yes, that was true. However, they had come second every time. And Bella knew second place didn't get you anywhere, but it did help you climb the ladder. And it didn't help matters that their previous Captain was one of the most insufferable, pretentious people Bella had ever met. Half the team had hated her, and it shouldn't have surprised her that no one listened her. But, Jen melted under the scrutiny, and it showed in the team's performance. Bella would not let that happen. Jen had gone on to have no job offers, and simply faded into obscurity. Bella would never do that. She wouldn't allow it.

'And so,' Dumbledore reached into a drawer in his desk and removed a small golden badge. 'Bellatrix, do your team proud.'

Bella grinned, she couldn't help it. She stared at the badge as her name began to etch itself onto it, underneath the words reading 'Captain'.

'Well done,' Jamie told her, greeting her gaze with a warm smile. Alex on the other side simply nodded at her.

'Your robes, please.' Dumbledore reminded her. Bella took her Quidditch robes off the side of the chair and handed them to the headmaster. When she next saw them, they would have 'Captain' embroidered on the back. She was still smiling.

Dumbledore passed his attention back to the boys.

'Don't feel disheartened,' Dumbledore told them. Alex snorted. 'you are in very capable hands. And I know that as a team, you are inescapably strong. I know you will continue,' He took one last look at them all. He locked eye contact with Bella, making a silent mental note to keep a close eye on her. 'you are dismissed.'

Bella stopped herself skipping out of the office with happiness. She knew it wasn't fair to the lads, so she didn't express her glee… Even though part of her was saying it wasn't her problem that they'd not got it. Jamie clasped her on the back when they got back onto the corridor.

'You deserve it.' He told her, looking her in the eyes, letting her know that he was perfectly sincere about it.

'Thanks,' Bella smiled back. 'although you could easily have got it.'

Jamie shrugged. 'You'll do it better. I applied just in case. You'd make a better Captain than me, any day.'

'Really, thank you, Jamie.' Bella said again. He smiled and gave her a mock salute.

'Captain.' He smiled. 'I'll see you later, Bells.'

She returned the goodbye. When she turned back around, Alex had gone completely, without even a second glance. Bella sighed. He'd come around. He was short-tempered, and he'd have cooled off in about half an hour, anyway. Bella walked back to the common room happily, unable to wait to tell her friends the good news.

At dinner that night the whole school was seated as they waited for the news of their Quidditch Captains. Strictly speaking, they weren't supposed to tell anyone who'd got the position, but everyone always told their friends. The four heads of houses were standing at the front of the hall, each in front of their respective houses. Professor Slughorn was holding the Captain's badge, and Bella's emerald Quidditch robes, now with 'Captain' in bold black lettering on the back. Of course, only a few knew that they were Bella's robes.

Professor Dumbledore had begun with a small introductory speech, and Bella had tried to tune out to it, as she still didn't like him, even though he'd been the one to give her the Captaincy position.

'You're Captains,' Dumbledore continued, as Bella realised it was impossible to tune out when the only sound she could hear was his voice. The rest of the school were in a suspense induced silence. 'are the ones responsible for bringing your team to victory this year, and indeed, until they leave the school. They choose who represents your house Quidditch team, and they lead practices. A lot of responsibility rests on their shoulders, and they should know the challenges they face are theirs alone.' His glittering blue eyes surveyed the room, gradually meeting the gaze of each of the Captains where they sat – though none of them noticed who the others were.

'You play Quidditch as a team, but you captain a team alone.' He paused to allow each of the new Captains to stew on this for a moment. Bella glared. She knew this, and it didn't bother her in the slightest. She knew she could lead her team into victory – she _would_ lead them to victory, she was sure of it.

'And without further ado, I will announced the Quidditch Captains,' He unrolled a small scroll of parchment. She saw Professor Slughorn give her a quick smile, and she returned it. He was evidently proud of her.

'For Hufflepuff… Timothy Macmillan.'

There was a loud applause from the Hufflepuff table, although it was hard for Bella to hear the full blast of it, as they were at the opposite end of the room. Timothy had played on the team for three years, and as far as Bella was concerned, he didn't deserve the position. He barely played the sport, let alone possessed the ability to run the team!

'For Ravenclaw… Chelsea Collier.'

Chelsea was a good player. Bella could only agree with that decision. Chelsea was a friend of Bella's, in some respects, she'd say a quick hello in corridors, and maybe a 'how are you?' now and then. It was that kind of friendship. Chelsea looked as though she was at home in the spotlight as she strode up to collect her robes and Captain badge.

'For Slytherin… Bellatrix Black.'

Bella grinned. She got up and made her way to Professor Slughorn, the shocking noise from the Slytherin table following behind her. She could still hear Lucy and Abby screaming as she got to the front. Slughorn shook her hand, and handed her the robes and badge.

'Well done, Bellatrix,' He told her. 'we'll have to take another photo for the wall!' He beamed at her. Bella nodded and smiled at him. She turned back to face her table before walking back to her seat. The feeling she got then would have been enough to make her smile every day for the rest of her life. Seeing everyone watching her, everyone smiling and cheering… and it was all for her. She loved that feeling. She sat back down on the bench, as Lucy pulled her into a hug, even though she already knew before now.

She almost missed Professor Dumbledore beginning to announce the last house. Bella had almost forgotten.

'And last, but not least. For Gryffindor… James Potter.'

Bella stopped smiling. James? She bit her lip. Now _this_ would make things difficult. She knew that any relationships you had stayed off the pitch, but something like this? Someone that when you saw them off pitch, you were kissing them… how do you put that aside? How do you leave something like that off the pitch?

James seemed to be enjoying himself though, almost dancing back to his seat, brandishing the Captain's badge into Sirius' face for a laugh.

Bella tried to put the smile back onto her face before someone noticed something was wrong. She heard Jamie down the table muttering something about James to one of his friends. Narcissa caught Bella's eye, conveying instant sympathy to her sister. She knew that Bella and James had previously had something going, and this would hurt even if they hadn't seen each other since.

As everyone left the Great Hall, Andromeda caught up with Bella, who greeted her with nothing but a cold stare.

'Congratulations.' Annie told her stiffly.

'Thank you.' Bella said in the same tone. Annie inhaled awkwardly. 'Anything else?' Bella asked her in a bored expression.

'Nope,' Annie replied quickly. 'I saw how you reacted to James getting Gryffindor Captain, though.' She smirked at Bella.

Bella glared at her. 'Yeah. It'll be tough competition. I was hoping for someone more… weak.'

'You mean someone other than James?'

'_No_.' Bella told her sternly.

The girls were so deep in their own emotions that they didn't notice someone else slide onto the scene with them.

'Did I hear my name, there?' James Potter was grinning from ear to ear.

Annie smirked.

'We were talking about you, not to you.' Bella told him, trying not to smile.

James nodded, still grinning. 'A word, Black?' He purposely used her surname so Annie wouldn't suspect anything. Bella nodded, trying not to look pleased to be asked, then followed James along a quiet corridor. He held open the door to an empty classroom, then walked inside after Bella, shutting the door behind him.

As soon as that door was shut, his hands were all over her. Bella smiled. It felt like home when she was in his arms. She almost melted into his chest.

'I believe congratulations are in order,' James breathed, then kissed her neck passionately.

'Same to you,' Bella smiled, then twisted in his arms to face him. James draped his scarlet Quidditch robes around her, then held her at arm's length to survey his work.

'Red still looks wrong on you,' He smirked. Bella held onto his robes and pulled them tighter around her.

'Sure?' She looked down at herself. 'What if I was wearing _just_ the robes?'

James' eyes almost literally lit up. 'That might change things.'

Bella slipped her tie loose and took it off, dropping it on the floor. James could only watch her. She proceeded to undo the top three buttons of her shirt, so the top of her bra was just about showing. James gaped at her. Bella stopped there and laughed.

'Oh, James. I could keep you in my palm, I really could.'

James looked a little embarrassed, but quickly overcame it. 'I'd rather you kept me in your underwear to be honest…'

Bella gave him a look. 'That's not going to be happening.'

'We did spend the night together at your place that time…' James gave her a cheeky smile.

'But we didn't actually _do_ anything.'

James shrugged. 'Should have.'

Bella shook her head. 'I don't do that, James.'

'What d'you mean? You don't do sex? I don't understand…'

'Sex before marriage,' Bella told him. 'I don't expect you to understand. With my background; if you don't get married to someone you finished school in a relationship with, or your parents disagree, then your parents choose someone for you. That's just how it goes. You have to keep the pureblood line, and so, you marry young and to a pureblood.' Bella shrugged. 'Call it traditional, if you like.'

'I call it crazy.' James laughed. 'That's ridiculous! Why can't you just marry who you want, and have some fun at school?'

'Because that's not how it works!'

'Well,' James sat himself down on a desk, and Bella took the opposite one. He held hold of her hands. 'say, for example, you were _going_ to get married to someone – a pureblood, after you finished school. Someone you'd chosen, and you'd both agreed and everything… could you sleep with him then? Because you knew you would get married?'

Bella stared at him. 'I guess…' She shrugged. 'What are you getting at, James?'

'Say that person you met at school, and arranged to get married to…' He looked up and met her gaze. 'was me.'


	11. Trials

Bella stared at the ceiling. There was a small black mark on the ceiling that she'd never noticed before. She glanced at her watch. Four hours she'd spent watching that same black dot above her. Lucy was asleep. Abby was out. She was out with Matt, and they'd been gone since before Bella came back. She assumed that Abby was just going to spend the night in the boys' dorms. That happened sometimes. She'd just sleep in Matt's bed and join in with their conversations. Bella was a little jealous of it when she thought about it properly. All the closeness Abby and Matt had, and all the little things that made them a cute couple. Even though Bella knew the gory details of their relationship – the cheating, the lies – she still envied her.

Lucy muttered something in her sleep and turned over, the sheets rustling slightly. The bed squeaked.

And then there was James to think about. Had he really asked her to marry him? Bella couldn't bear to even consider her parents' reaction to that. They'd disown her, surely. But did she really care? Of course she did. Bella shut her eyes. She was chasing her thoughts in circles now. When she opened her eyes, she told herself to think clearly and methodically. Did she love James? Maybe. Did she want to marry James? Dependent on the first question. She sighed. She didn't know the answers to her own questions – how on earth was she supposed to answer his?

Lucy mumbled to herself again. Bella ignored her once more and tried to find her trail of thought.

There was a sudden squeak of the bed next to her. Lucy was sitting bolt upright, her eyes wide and staring at nothing in front of her. She was drenched in sweat and panting as if she'd just done the four-hundred metres.

'Luce?' Bella whispered, wondering whether or not she was still dreaming.

Lucy's head flicked around the look at her. Bella almost jumped back.

Bella cleared her throat quietly. 'Lucy, are you okay?' She didn't get an answer. As fast as Lucy had sat up, she dropped back onto her bed, collapsed into a heap. Bella's eyes spun around the dorm; everyone was still fast asleep. She silently got out of her bed and crept over to Lucy's, kneeling down beside her bed to be at eye-line with her. Bella gently stroked her hair.

'Lucy… what happened?'

Her eyes finally met Bella's. 'Evan,' She breathed. 'he's gone. He's left.'

'What?'

'He's _gone_.'

'What do you mean?'

Lucy whimpered slightly. 'He's left school. He's actually done it. Him and Rookwood… they left.'

'How do you know?'

'I just do!' Lucy momentarily raised her voice. She inhaled and calmed herself down. 'I know they left. I saw it, and that's when I woke up.'

Bella crossed her legs and sat down on the wooden floor. 'Well how did they leave? The front door is locked at night…'

Lucy shut her eyes to think. 'I don't… they were… You know it's difficult to remember dreams, Bella.' She paused again. 'It was some kind of passage way… third, no, fourth floor? I'm not sure. Oh! It started with a statue.'

'A statue? Of what?'

'I don't know, I wasn't focussing on that. I was watching Evan.' Lucy said, relieved to have actually said one thing that was remotely useful.

Bella looked at her. 'Just try and go back to sleep, Luce, okay?'

'Yeah,' Lucy manage to give her a small smile before she curled up in her duvet once more. Bella exhaled slowly. She crept back into her own bed and resumed her position staring at the ceiling. It didn't help – she was still feeling as confused as before. Eventually, she fell asleep.

The next morning Bella was rudely awoken by a violent shaking feeling. She forced her eyes open and almost shut them again from shock. Jamie was literally directly in front of her.

'What- the- fuck-' Bella's voice shook as Jamie shook her.

Jamie finally stopped and simply stared at her. 'Alex wants off the team.'

Bella bolted upright, nearly head-butting Jamie in the process. '_What_?'

'Alex says he's sick of being told what to do, and that you'll be a worse Captain than our last one.'

'Thanks for not holding anything back, Jamie.' Bella said flatly.

'Oh, I held quite a bit back.'

Bella glared at him. Jamie smiled back awkwardly.

'Clear off and let me get dressed.'

'Oh, okay.' Jamie's eyes unavoidably drifted down to Bella's pyjamas – a term used very loosely on Bella.

'_Jamie_.'

He shook his head. 'Right, sorry, Bella.' He dragged himself up off the floor, and backed out of the dorms, shutting the door quietly behind him. Bella only noticed then that she was the only one left in her dorm. She swung her legs off her bed and rubbed her eyes with her hands. She couldn't believe that Alex would just have decided to call it quits – he loved Quidditch more than anything.

The pitch was dark that morning. Bella pulled the hood of her Quidditch robes over her head and wrapped the robes around herself. Her eyes were cold to match the weather as she stormed towards the pitch, wind billowing through her cloak. She opened the gates wordlessly. Non-verbal magic came easily to her when she was angry. So much so that she could have sworn the gates opened before she cast the spell.

She was greeted by the gloomy atmosphere that the Slytherin team presented to her. The current team. There would be trials, but it looked like they would be postponed. Bella had a mind to tell Jamie and Alex they didn't have to try out because they were in the running for Captain… but now Alex had gone – she didn't know what to do. She marched straight to the cluster of Slytherins, hit the end of her broom on the ground, and everyone fell silent and looked at her. All eyes were on her, scared by the surging anger in her eyes.

'Where is he?' She said in a low voice. No reply. '_Alex_, where is he?'

A fourth year named Kitty lifted her ginger hair to look at Bella. 'He's in the changing rooms… says he's going back to the common room.'

Bella didn't wait to answer her, she just stalked towards the changing rooms. She kicked the door open with a bang, and half the team on the pitch jumped. It was evident who was in charge of this situation.

Alex was just packing his Quidditch robes into a bag. He didn't bother looking up when Bella entered, although it was obvious he knew she was there. Everyone heard her enter.

'Don't bother.' He started, shaking his hair out of his eyes.

'Why? Because you're not worth it? Because you don't like me? Take your pick.' She snatched the bag from the bench and hurled it across to the other side of the changing rooms. It hit the back wall and thudded onto the floor, some of the contents slipping out. Alex finally looked up and met her gaze. His expression was beyond scared. He was terrified.

'I'll tell you which, Alex,' Bella told him, knowing she now had his full attention. 'you _are_ fucking worth it – you're a good Quidditch player. One of the best. And I don't care what your reasons for leaving are, or why you assume it's a good idea, or what kind of Captain you'll think I'll be – you _are not_ leaving this team. D'you hear me?' He nodded meekly. 'Good.'

Training didn't happen that day. Alex went back to the common room, even having admitted defeat and saying he'd stay on the team. Bella called off practice, and told everyone that the try-outs would be held the next day.

As it turned out, Bella picked the worst possible weather for try-outs. It was pouring down with rain, bolting onto the ground with such force it made it look like hail from a distance. Although, Bella didn't think it was all bad. They needed to be able to play in bad weather, they weren't always going to have sunshine and a breeze. They'd played in thunder storms before. They ought to get used to it.

Chaser try-outs were first, and with Jamie on her left side, they were looking for two people. One of their previous team was looking casual down on the ground, almost knowing she'd be back. Kitty Rookwood had gained considerable confidence from the night before, although Bella knew Kitty was easily flustered by anger. Luckily, she didn't panic on the pitch. Her hair was all curled behind her, and tied up securely with two bobbles. She was Augustus Rookwood's little sister. Although, nobody called him Augustus… he was just known as AJ to most people – his middle name was John.

Bella stood up, to address Lucy down on the ground. She'd roped in Lucy to unleash the Quidditch balls. She nodded at her, and Lucy released the Quaffle, trying her best to through it up in the air high, like the referees in matches did. She failed quite miserably, but Bella couldn't help but smile at her effort.

Kitty was the first after it, grabbing it with both hands and zooming off to the opposite side of the pitch, her hair frantically attempting to escape her pony tail. Bella leant forwards on her seat, trying to watch every move she was making. She neatly pocketed the Quaffle through the centre hoop (much to the Keeper's dislike) and all with one simple flick of her wrist. Bella had to admit she was impressed.

'She's good, right?' Jamie interrupted her thoughts. Bella nodded, not wanting to take her eyes off the pitch in case she missed something. One of the others had the Quaffle now, but they didn't keep it for long, Kitty took back quickly.

'You feel okay playing alongside her?' Bella asked Jamie quietly, allowing herself to tear her eyes away from the pitch to look Jamie in the eyes.

'Yeah,' he nodded. 'why wouldn't I be?'

Bella raised her eyebrows. 'You think I don't know about what happened after our last match last year?' Jamie didn't flinch. 'I can remind you if you like. It was just after Gryffindor had won the Quidditch Cup, and Kitty was upset. You guys went back to the common room before us and-'

'Okay, okay!' Jamie held his hands up, a cheeky grin on his face. 'You got me, alright? But yeah, I'm good playing with her.'

'I know _that_.'

'Bella!'

She giggled. 'Yep, I hear you. Just joking with you!'

Jamie rolled his eyes. 'We done here?'

'You're distracted.'

'I'm not.'

'So far you're happy playing with only two chasers?'

Jamie sighed to himself, unable to turn back to look at Bella. 'Right. Sorry. Maybe I am a bit distracted.'

Bella smirked. 'Alright. Which of the others do you want?'

'It's not up to me, is it?'

'Nope. It's up to me. And right now – I'm telling you to choose.'

'Damn it,' Jamie chuckled. 'let's see then.' He leant forwards to get a closer look. There was one boy and another girl. The boy was in his fourth year, and the girl in her fifth. 'Well, the girl seems pretty good…'

'Nothing to do with the fact that she's pretty?'

'Nope,' Jamie shook his head. 'it's to do with the fact that she's _fit_.' Bella sighed and just let him get on with it. Both the other candidates were as good as each other, so it didn't really matter who Jamie chose.

'What's her name?' Jamie asked Bella, not bothering to turn around.

'Serena Keas.'

'Sounds Spanish…'

'Keep your head in the game, Jamie.'

'Oh… I am.'

Bella stopped listening then. They didn't actually _need_ anyone else for the team after this. They just had to hold the trials and re-hire the old team. Well, that's what Bella intended to do, anyway – whether anyone else knew or not. She just had to sit back and let everyone show her their skills. She could get used to that. Until James popped back into her head. She thought she was seeing things at first, but when she blinked a few times, she realised that James was actually standing by the gates the stadium.

'Bells…' Jamie began, his reaction only a few seconds behind. 'What the fuck is Potter doing here?'

'I'll deal with it.' Bella told him, immediately standing up.

'You sure? I'll come with you…'

'I _said_ I will deal with it.' Bella glared at him. Jamie's expression turned to something resembling a frightened puppy. She didn't mean to snap at him, but there was no way she was letting him come with her. She had to deal with this alone.


	12. Tribulations

Bella glared at James the second she shut the gate behind her. He was grinning back. She was about to unleash all hell on him, but then she realised that she could see him from where she was sitting, so that meant Jamie could also see them. She grabbed James' arm and dragged him away from the gate and behind the changing room block – out of sight.

'What the hell do you think you're doing?' Bella hissed at him, her hand still locked onto his arm like a vice.

'Bloody hell,' James muttered, slapping her hand off him. 'you've got some grip on you, Bells.' She didn't respond. 'I was just going to wait for you, that's all! Merlin, I wasn't spying or anything!'

She didn't like this. Not one bit. It was too risky. If someone even saw them talking it could have disastrous consequences. He should know better!

'Are you insane?' Bella growled, a fire starting in her eyes that was all too familiar. James sensed it, though he'd never seen the full power of her emotions before.

'D'you want to go inside a min?' He asked her, trying his best to project a calm voice. He held open the changing room door. She stared at him for a minute before silently agreeing. He followed her inside and shut the door.

'Listen,' he began. 'I'm sorry I came here, okay? I shouldn't have.'

'No, you shouldn't.'

'I said I'm sorry!'

'Don't apologise. It's a sign of weakness.'

'Better to seek forgiveness than ask permission.' James came back at her with a smirk. Bella's eyes melted slightly. 'Besides, is that any way to talk to your possible fiancé?'

'Operative word there, James,' Bella raised her eyebrows. '_possible_. As in unconfirmed.'

James sighed and sunk down onto one of the benches. 'Come off it, Bells. You know we'd be great together.'

Bella laughed, she couldn't stop herself. 'Great together? You mean have great sex together.'

'No.' James said, though it was very unconvincing.

'There are plenty of other girls you could go after, you know. Girls who don't have a strict family who'd disown her if they thought for one second she wasn't a virgin when she got married.'

'They'd really do that?'

'We've been through this.' Bella told him once more. She did not want to have to repeat herself. If what James was promising actually happened, they'd be fine. But, if he was just saying this to get her to sleep with him… it didn't bear thinking about.

'Do you really think I'd use you like that?' James said, almost reading her mind. 'Just drop you after I got what I wanted? Or rather, what you _think_ I wanted.'

Bella shrugged. She'd never admit it, but she felt almost embarrassed to have thought that of him. She turned away from him so he couldn't sense her humiliation. Remus Lupin already knew about them, though… and if he told someone… well, they might as well just get married, for all the change it would make. Bella would be completely finished. She might as well just hang herself now.

She was pulled out of her reverie when she felt hands creeping around her waist.

'Bella,' James breathed. 'I love you.'

It took all the strength Bella had not to start hyperventilating right there and then. She couldn't speak. Her voice seemed to have disappeared along with the last breath she took, which seemed to have been minutes ago. She inhaled, finally finding her voice. All she could manage to whisper was; 'Really?'

'Really, really.' James replied quickly, kissing her neck.

She tried to think straight… her head was just massive blur. Love. What did it even mean? If it meant that one person you can't stop thinking about, who you would give anything to spend time with, always on your mind, hate it when they leave… butterflies when they say your name…

'I love you, too, James.'

'Are you saying you'll marry me?'

'I'm saying I'll marry you.'

And then it happened.

Hours had passed and Bella was still smiling at the ceiling in the dorms. That same black spec from days before was still there. But this time it wasn't something she'd tried to find to take her mind off things… it reminded her of nice things. She couldn't remember a time she'd felt so… relaxed. She felt calm. But at the same time excited. It was strange to her, but she liked it. So much. She was lying on her back, smoking a cigarette, then watching the smoke twirl around in the air.

'What possible reason can you claim this time?' Lucy's voice came from the doorway. Bella almost jumped. She didn't see her come in, she was that wrapped up in her thoughts. Lucy sat down on her own bed and surveyed her best friend. She seemed different.

'I know you had Quidditch trials this morning… but you weren't playing. So you can't claim post-Quidditch.' Lucy told her with a smile.

'Definitely post-something.' Bella said in hardly more than a murmur.

'You sure you're smoking cigarettes? You've not got anything off Lucas, have you?' Lucy asked, one eyebrow raised in a quizzical manner.

'Nope,' Bella smiled at the ceiling. 'just nicotine.'

'And why are you so happy, then?'

Bella sat up and curled her legs underneath her, facing Lucy. She couldn't have looked more curious. Bella giggled to herself, not really sure she could stop herself telling Lucy the truth.

'I'll find out eventually.' Lucy shrugged.

'You won't,' Bella laughed. 'there's only me and him that know!' She clasped her hand to her mouth the second she'd said it. Lucy smirked.

'Oh, I'm good.' Lucy grinned at her. 'So, something with a guy, then? Mind you, what's new? You're always with a guy!'

'That's not true! I was a virgin 'til today, I'll have you know!' Once more Bella hated herself for speaking without thinking. Lucy let out a small scream, before her grin increased.

'Oh, really? _Before today_? Ouch, Bella, you fell for that one! So, who is he?'

Bella bit her lip and shook her head. No way was she letting herself say anything else!

'Bet it was Roddy.'

'It most certainly was not!'

'Who is it then?'

Bella shook her head again.

'If I guess it, will you say if I'm right?'

She thought about it for a second. What were the chances of her guessing James? Practically impossible, unless she was going to name every boy in their year. 'Yeah, okay.'

'Right,' Lucy beamed at her. 'Jamie?'

'No! Don't be disgusting! He's like my brother!'

'Alex?'

'Not on good terms with him right now.'

'Barty Crouch?'

'We're just friends!'

'AJ Rookwood?'

'Not saying I wouldn't, but no.'

Lucy looked disheartened. 'And your _sure_ it's not Roddy?'

'Of course, I'm sure! I hate the guy!'

Lucy pouted in thought. 'Rabastan?'

'_His brother_?' Bella spat. 'What do you take me for?'

'Do I really have to answer that?' Lucy grinned cheekily at her. Bella smirked. She knew her too well.

'Well, okay. I would have to get at him, but I _didn't_.'

'Oh, actually…' Lucy paused for a moment. 'You lost it to this guy, whoever he is. So he's got to be pretty special, right?'

Bella nodded, trying her best not to give anything away.

'So who is he? No guy is _that_ special to you!'

'Hey!' Bella protested. Lucy inadvertently leant forward slightly. 'I'm not falling for that.'

'Shit,' Lucy kicked her side of her bed with the back of her heel from where she was sitting. 'just tell me, Bella.' She gave her the best-friend-eyes. 'Please?'

'No! I can't! You'll think I'm crazy if I tell you. Hell, you'll stop talking to me.'

'I won't! Bella, I promise! Even if you slept with some random Gryffindor… first year! I wouldn't stop speaking to you,' She thought about it for a minute. 'might be a little bit scared that you were a paedophile, but I'd still be your friend.'

'Lucy, you disgust me,' Bella grinned. 'okay, if I tell you, you have to promise not to tell anyone, okay?'

'I promise.'

'As in the kind of promise that would be Unbreakable, if I could risk one other person knowing in order to bind it.'

'Whoa, that's some serious shit, Bells.' Lucy raised an eyebrow at her. 'Just tell me, already.'

Bella took a deep breath. 'James Potter.'

Lucy didn't speak. Her eyes were wider than ever, and her mouth had just fallen open.

'What?' Lucy said finally, sure she must have misheard. 'Really?' Bella nodded, unable to do anything else. Lucy nodded slowly and sat back on her bed. A few minutes passed. Lucy returned to normal as she sat up suddenly and turned back to Bella.

'Was it amazing?'

'Absolutely.'

'You and Potter gonna do it again?'

'Dunno,' Bella pretended to think about it, then grinned at Lucy. 'probably seeing as he asked me to marry him!'

Lucy screamed then, a proper scream. She flew at Bella and pulled her into a huge hug.

'Oh my God!' Lucy beamed at her, finally releasing her. 'I can't believe you're actually going to get married!' She let out another excited scream.

'I know, I know,' Bella grinned back at her, relieved that she could finally let out her own excitement.

'When's the wedding going to be?'

'I don't know, we haven't talked about it yet!'

'I best be your maid of honour!'

'Obviously!'

The door flew open with a _bang_, and Abby stood in the doorway. 'Luce…' She said quietly. The smiles vanished off Lucy and Bella's faces when they heard Abby's tone of voice. 'Lucy, you'd better see this.'

Abby led both girls through the common room, which was now strangely deserted. They walked in silence, Lucy not even daring the ask what the matter was. Although, deep down, both her and Bella knew what they were about to witness.

They stopped in the Entrance Hall, where a throng of people had already gathered. Lucy managed to stand on top of a bench to see what was going on. Bella could just about make out the scene from where she was standing, and she felt genuine sympathy for Lucy when she saw it.

Evan and AJ Rookwood were both standing in the centre of the hallway, with Professor Dumbledore blocking their apparent exit. They both had their suitcases behind them, but something told Bella that this was so much more than frightened plea for attention.

'You have to think of your futures, boys.' Dumbledore told them. Professor Slughorn was standing meekly at his right hand side, nodding along with whatever the headmaster said.

'We _are_ thinking of our futures! That's why we want to leave!' Evan shouted, a passionate force behind his voice.

'If you'd just sit down in my office – we'll talk about this nice and calmly-'

'We don't want to talk about it!' AJ piped up, taking a few steps forwards. Evan briefly gave AJ a pleading look not to do what he was about to. 'We've made up our minds! We're leaving to go and join a cause! Something you wouldn't know a thing about, with your mudblood loving school.' A few people in the crowd gasped. Bella rolled her eyes automatically at them.

'Language, Mr Rookwood.' Dumbledore said in a somewhat bored tone.

'Just get out of the way! Let us leave!' AJ continued arguing with him. Dumbledore didn't reply, he was now watching Evan intently. Evan wasn't saying anything, his eyes were focussed on the floor, as thought concentrating on something. Dumbledore was about to interrupt him, to stop him doing what he was doing, when two broomsticks came zooming down the hallway. Evan jumped onto his before it had even stopped, grabbing his case and flying straight over the heads of his teachers, AJ right behind him.

'_Evan_!' Lucy let out an almost ear-piercing cry. Her brother stopped his descent, and turned his broom around in the air. His eyes fell onto his little sister. Tears were now streaming down her face, as her eyes melted into his soul. He shook his head. She'd be fine as long as he left now.

'Evan, don't go!' Lucy cried out again. 'Please, don't go!' She was crying herself into a frenzy now. Bella was worried watching her. Her eyes were fading out, she was swaying slightly… Lucy collapsed onto the floor, people parting like the red sea, as though it was contagious.

'Move, move,' Bella pushed people further out of the way and knelt down beside Lucy. She put her hand to her neck. Pulse. Good. She didn't think she'd have died, but they do say it is possible to die of a broken heart. Bella was about to try and get Lucy off the floor, when she noticed Evan and AJ begin to leave once more, out of the corner of her eye. That was heartless! Without even checking if his sister was okay? Bella stood up, got on top of the bench where Lucy had been standing and held her wand up. Everyone was so pre-occupied with Evan and AJ and Lucy to notice her anyway.

'Accio, broomstick!' Bella used the same spell that Evan had non-verbally used minutes earlier. She held her hand out and felt her broom slip into her grasp. It was all she needed. She threw it into the air and hopped onto it. She was going to get Evan back. He was not leaving like this! It would rip Lucy apart!

'Evan!' She yelled after him, the wind tearing past her so fast it burned. '_Evan_!'

'Go back, Bella!' He shouted back at her, allowing himself to turn back for one minute.

'You're not leaving her like that!'

'It's for the best! Turn _back_!' He fired at her. He actually turned and fired at her. Bella dodged it, but that wasn't the point. She felt a sudden reluctance in her broom, like whiplash. Evan was getting further and further away. She tried to make her broom move. It wasn't moving at all! It wasn't doing _anything_! After this moment of nothing, Bella felt herself being almost tugged backwards. It was slow at first and she wondered what was going on, but after it had started it became quicker and quicker, until she had to hold onto the broom to stop herself falling backwards! The trees of the forest were getting ever increasingly smaller, and what was Evan and AJ had now become tiny dots in her vision. They vanished from sight.

She hit the ground hard on her back, her head barely missing the floor. She stared around angrily for the source of what had brought her almost magnetically to the ground. Professor Dumbledore was standing a few feet away, his wand raised. He slowly put it back into the pocket of his robes.

Bella leapt up, not even aware that they had an audience.

'How can you let him do that?' She screamed. 'Just leave without another word! If you can bring me back, why didn't you bring them back! At least I had to intention of coming back of my own accord!'

Professor Slughorn almost looked proud as he stood a step behind the headmaster.

'Bellatrix, it would have been a fruitless endeavour. They'd have tried again and again until they eventually succeeded.' Dumbledore told her calmly. She glared at him. Without another word, she turned on her heels and stormed away into the crowd. Lucy had long gone by now, she had probably been taken to the hospital wing. But Bella needed to calm down. She'd been unbelievably happy then so angry should could have killed someone, within the space of about twenty minutes. She needed to unwind. She needed a cigarette.

Bella reached into the pocket of her robes. Damn it! There was nothing left but an empty packet. She threw it onto the floor in disgust. Failing a cigarette, Bella decided that peace and quiet would do nicely. So, she headed for the library.

Finding herself a nice book about the Dark Arts, and sat down in a chair and started reading, gradually feeling better. Reading didn't always help calm her down, but she'd often found solace in the Dark Arts, it just seemed to make her feel better. At least when she was learning about it, she knew that if someone crossed her she could deal with it properly.

She saw someone else come into the library and take a book from a nearby shelf – Lily Evans. She'd know that ginger hair anywhere. If she hadn't have known her name, she'd have guessed she were a Weasley. Bella smirked to herself. Arthur Weasley was a seventh year Gryffindor, who seemed to have a particularly hard time dealing with Slytherins. Especially ones who liked to fight back. Bella knew this all too well. She took her eyes off Lily as she sat down across the room, and went back to her book.

Another person entered the library shortly after. Bella didn't bother looking up, she was sick of interruptions. But when she heard whispering, she couldn't help but be nosy and listen in.

The other person was Sirius. He was in Quidditch robes, but clearly they weren't his, as they read _Potter_ on the back. They also said Captain, too, and Bella would have laughed if Sirius were his house Captain.

'Lily,' Sirius hissed at her. Lily looked up angrily.

'What?'

Sirius grinned at her.

'What?' She repeated.

'Found something in James' Quidditch robes…' he said, teasing her. Lily's expression didn't change.

'Whatever it is, hope it's not contagious.' Even Bella had to admit that it was a good comeback… for a mudblood, anyway.

'You ought to know,' Sirius smirked.

'Sirius, I have no idea what you're talking about.' Lily told him flatly. Sirius looked mildly confused for a moment, the idiot grin fading slightly. He put his hand into the pocket of James' robes. Bella had never been more embarrassed in her whole life than that moment, when Sirius pulled out a pair of lacy black underwear and held it slightly above the table.

'Sirius,' Lily bit her lip to stop herself laughing. 'they're not mine.'

'Huh? Sure they are… James said he was with you…'

Lily shut the book and stood up. 'Well, if he was then he drugged me first.' She slid the book back onto a shelf and left the library without another word. Sirius looked dumfounded. He tried to work out what had just happened. He realised he was still holding up the underwear and quickly stuffed them back into his pocket.

'That didn't go plan.' Bella said to him quickly, appearing by his side without a sound.

'Could say that,' Sirius muttered distractedly. He realised then who he was speaking to. 'it's none of your business anyway.'

Bella shrugged. 'Alright then.' She left it there. She wanted so badly to tease him that she knew something he didn't… but it would only lead to bad things. She needed to see James soon. She wanted to talk to him. Just be near him. She sighed as she walked through the corridors. She really was in love with him.


	13. A Very Public Affair

Bella left the hospital wing with Abby, feeling like she'd failed as a friend. Lucy was awake now, but Madame Yelena, the nurse, had had her drinking some sort of tonic for the past half an hour. Bella thought she should have done something more, fought harder against Dumbledore when he brought her back to the ground. She could have fired back at Evan. She should have done more…

'Don't beat yourself up about it,' Abby told her, breaking her thoughts. 'you tried your best, Bella. No one could have asked any more than that.'

She glared at her.

'Only trying to help,' Abby mumbled, her eyes now looking somewhat hurt. Bella sighed.

'I didn't mean it, Abby. I know you're just trying to make me feel better.' Bella said slowly, unwilling to apologise – like always. Abby nodded back, but didn't say anything else, she knew it would be pointless.

'We should get something to eat.' Abby stated suddenly, having just seen the clock. 'They'll only just have started dinner.'

Bella sighed. 'Okay.' She didn't really feel like eating, but she knew she ought to.

The Great Hall was inescapably busy, like always, but they managed to find a space at the Slytherin table. Jamie moved over a bit so that Abby could sit with Matt, and Bella sat between her and Jamie.

'Nice moves today, Bells.' He told her, taking a fork full of his food. Even the sight of food was making Bella feel ill.

'Thanks.' She replied quietly.

'We're going to be on top form this year, I know it.' Jamie grinned at her. She managed to smile back.

James Potter strolled into the Great Hall, and Bella's eyes lit up involuntarily. Luckily, Jamie didn't see it. He did, however, notice her eyes change to the dark and stormy look they'd had the day Alex said he was leaving. He followed Bella's gaze. All he could see was James Potter kissing some girl from his house. He looked back at Bella. What was the problem?

'Bella…?' He said in almost a whisper. He knew what she was like when she was angry, and he didn't want to provoke her, but he couldn't help the feeling that he was missing something. She didn't respond. She was still intently watching Potter and the girl, like she wanted to kill the pair of them, right there and then.

Narcissa saw the scene moments after it began to unfold. She scanned the table for her sister, and the second she found her, she leapt up.

'Bella, come on, let's go outside.' Narcissa whispered to her sister, as she appeared behind her. She took Bella's arm and led her out of the Great Hall. Even thought Narcissa didn't know anything else about Bella and James' relationship, she could guess enough by her reaction, that it hadn't ended when James went home after the party.

Once they were safely out of the Great Hall and in a deserted corridor, Bella let her tears run their course. She had no idea herself, how angry she was. He said he wanted to marry her, he said he loved her… and there he was, kissing Lily Evans right where he knew she could see!

Bella slid down the wall and sat on the floor, her head in her hands. How could she let herself fall for this? Fall for _him_? She should have known he'd be using her!

Narcissa placed herself delicately on the floor in front of her sister. 'Don't blame yourself, Bella…' She told her soothingly.

'But it's my fault!' Bella cried, lifting her head only enough so she could make eye contact with her sister. 'I let him trick me like this… he's completely screwed me over!'

Narcissa gave her a quizzical look. She was about to question her sister, when she began talking anyway.

'We kept seeing each other when we came back to school,' Bella started. 'he said… he told me he loved me. He asked me to marry him…'

'Bella,' Narcissa stared at her, something else suddenly dawning on her. They'd joke about this kind of thing all the time, but they both knew the severity of the topic. 'please tell me you didn't…'

She nodded slowly, shutting her eyes because she couldn't bear to see the ashamed look on her sister's face. Narcissa sighed.

'I'm so stupid…' Bella muttered, wiping her eyes with her hands, although it didn't really help.

'You're not,' Narcissa replied gently. 'I'm sure anyone would have done what you did… if he said he'd marry you then there wouldn't be a problem, would there?'

'I hate him _so_ much.' Bella spat out through her tears. 'It hurts how much I hate him.'

She wasn't lying. If James had walked onto that corridor, she'd have killed him. Not even thought about it, she'd have raised her wand and murdered him in cold blood right there and then. No hesitation whatsoever. He deserved to die.

Footsteps on the otherwise silent corridor alerted the girls to another person.

'Bella?' The second-to-last person Bella wanted to see right then. Roddy Lestrange was hurrying towards them. Narcissa gently patted her sister on the shoulder, trying to make sure she didn't do something stupid.

'What's wrong?' He asked, bending down to meet her eye level, but not quite willing to sit on the floor.

'It's got nothing to do with you.' Bella choked out, still managing to glare at him, even with tears sparkling in her eyes.

'Come on,' He held his hand out to her. 'I'll take you back to the common room.'

'I haven't forgotten where it is.' Bella snarled, ignoring his invitation to help her up.

'I'm just trying to be nice,' Roddy told her, still keeping calm, which annoyed Bella even more. She wanted him to get annoyed with her and walk away. Bella got up off the floor herself, tears no longer lining her cheeks.

'Fine.' She said stiffly. 'Come on then.' She paced off ahead of him. Narcissa shook her head, she knew to expect this kind of thing from her sister. Roddy should have expected it, their previous relationship hadn't been smooth, but he still seemed shocked every time Bella pulled a stunt like this.

'Just go with it.' Narcissa smiled at him sympathetically. She turned in the opposite direction to go back to the Great Hall and rejoin her friends.

Roddy jogged around the corner to skid to Bella's side. They walked in silence for the most part of the journey. Roddy couldn't think of anything to say to her. He'd been waiting to get her on her own like this for so long, and now he was wasting the opportunity! However, the main factor was, and remained, that he was scared of her. He didn't want to say the wrong thing because he knew she wouldn't hesitate to hex him. And he wasn't up for that.

'Bella,' He began, but was met with a cruel stare. He cleared his throat nervously and continued. 'I just wanted to apologise for the way I've been acting recently… I can tell I've annoyed you a bit…'

'_A bit_? That's an understatement.' Bella muttered, turning her attention back to the corridor as they headed into the dungeons.

'Yeah, well, I'm sorry anyway.' He repeated. Bella nodded, not sure what to say next.

The truth was that Roddy missed her so much, he couldn't even find words to say it. He knew she'd been seeing someone else – it was blatantly obvious. She was never in the common room, and she kept sneaking out, evidently to meet someone. He suspected that it was Barty Crouch, after their encounter on the train. But, he wasn't sure. He certainly hadn't been with anyone else, he hadn't even _looked_ at another girl in that way, let alone follow it up. He just wished they could go back to how it was before! He knew he could change.

'I really miss you, you know.' Roddy said quietly, half wishing he'd never said it. It was greeted with a stony silence.

'Now's not the best time.' Bella said finally. She sighed. 'We can be friends, Roddy. If you like.'

He nodded, almost too quickly. 'Yeah, I'd like that.'

It was late when Lucy finally came back to the dorms. Bella had seen Olivia and Kitty Rookwood, AJ's younger sisters, and they were absolutely fine. She assumed AJ had spoken to them beforehand, but she didn't ask. Best not to. Lucy didn't say anything when she came in. She sat down on her bed and lit a cigarette, saying absolutely nothing. Bella knelt up on her bed and opened the window. Everyone else was asleep, they wouldn't mind. She checked her watch – two a.m.

'Nurse wouldn't let me leave,' Lucy said finally, breathing out smoke as she spoke. 'Had to wait 'til she went to bed then come here myself. She said I wasn't in a condition to be alone,' Her eyes met Bella's. 'I'm not alone.'

'Nope.' Bella replied.

'Hear you had a bit of a meltdown today. I'm not alone there either.'

'No, you're not,' Bella sighed. 'but it doesn't matter. It's not important.'

Lucy stared at her. 'Of course it is. Especially with what happened. You're not the only one who wants to kill Potter for what he did. Took all my strength not to start on Evans when she came into the hospital wing today. Smug bitch.'

Bella didn't reply. She studied Lucy for a moment. She seemed very different. Bella didn't comment.

'Well… thanks,' She muttered. 'you probably best get some sleep.' Bella knew that she ought to sleep too, it was the Quidditch match tomorrow, against Gryffindor. She had to be on her top form. She didn't wait for Lucy's reply, she simply turned over and knew that Lucy was going to sleep when she shut the window with her wand. Finally, Bella got to sleep.

The last Sunday in October had arrived. It had been looming like a dark cloud for what seemed like months. Everywhere Bella went she was reminded of it; by excited members of her team, supportive Slytherins, teachers determined for her homework to still be completed despite the training, Gryffindors trying to psych her out – it just didn't stop! And now it was finally here. And James Potter was going to be beaten, Bella wouldn't let it go any other way. All that anger was just boiling up, ready to explode on the pitch. The second she saw the Gryffindor team stroll into the Great Hall for breakfast, it became so difficult to contain it.

'Bella,' Jamie cut into her thought.

'What?' Bella hissed back through grated teeth, her eyes not leaving their rivals.

'You're stabbing the table.'

Bella's eyes dropped to the table she was sitting at. She hadn't even realised she was holding a fork, let alone piercing the table with it. She let go of the fork sharply.

'You sure you're okay?' Jamie probed. She nodded. 'Only, if we're going to win… we need our best played on her a-game.'

She smirked. 'Trust me, we're not loosing this one. Gryffindor are _not_ taking that trophy this year.'

James Potter chose this moment to turn around and observe his opposing Captain, and somewhat ex-fiancé. She looked fierce. Her eyes were clouded with darkness, and he could tell she'd been watching him, he could feel her eyes burning into the back of his neck. He knew she was mad with him… inescapably so. Inescapably being the operative word, there was no way he was going to escape her wrath. He knew what he was dealing with before he let himself into it. He'd heard Sirius' little horror stories about his supposedly evil cousin, and now James was about to find out if they were true. He took another glance at her. Her black, curly hair was tied back behind her, pulled into a tight pony tail to stop it getting in her way. Her pale skin seemed paler than ever, no colour in her cheeks at all. On the table next to her, her fist was clenched tightly. And James didn't like the look of her at all.

'Not letting my cousin psyche you out, are you?' Sirius grinned at him. James took a second to register, but smirked back at his friend.

'Nah, 'course not. Noticed she'd not had breakfast though – might lessen her strength.'

'Ah. So Bellatrix's strength has now been downgraded to human.' Sirius said, without a hint of irony.

'Downgraded from what?'

'Raving lunatic with super-strength.'

'Oh. Right, of course.'

After everyone was changed, the team waited for their Captain. Bella knew she was supposed to make some kind of team talk, but her mind was so clouded with hate for James Potter that she couldn't think of anything vaguely Quidditch related. She stood up. Time to wing it.

'So,' She began. 'today's match is not against Gryffindor – it is against losers.' There were a few sniggers and a wide grin from Regulus Black, as he thought of his brother. 'And we're going to win. But, we're not going to win because we're better than them.' She gave a pause for tension. 'We're going to win because we're more talented.' This was greeted with more smirks and smiles. 'So just bloody win. Okay?'

As the teams stepped out onto the pitch, the tension hit them straight away. A vice-like grip in the air, pulling them forwards even though they knew it would hurt on impact.

'Captains, shake hands.' Professor Merrythought was refereeing. Bella had heard rumours that she was retiring soon, possibly wouldn't even finish the term. Apparently she had family elsewhere and had spent too long away from them.

Nevertheless, she was stalling herself. She paced forwards to meet her opposing Captain in front of the Professor. Meeting James with a cold stare, she didn't drop her gaze. Why should she? She wasn't the one who did anything wrong. He did not, however, express anything that resembled regret. He seemed perfectly content.

'_Captains_.' The Professor reminded them. Reluctantly, Bella held out her hand, and James met it. They shook hands and promptly snatched back their own.

'Feeling guilty?' She hissed.

'Not at all.'

She turned on her heels, and called over her shoulder. 'You will be.' Matched with a looked over utter un-readability. James knew it had begun now. He swallowed hard, turned around and walked back to his team. He put on a hard expression. Sirius gave him a puzzled look, but James shrugged it off.

'Positions, please!'

Everyone rose into the air, chasers on the lowest layer, waiting for their fight for the Quaffle; beaters on the next, to get the upper hand over the Bludgers; then finally the seekers, waiting for the Snitch to soar above them. Bella's eyes flickered to meet James' for a fraction of a second. He saw their whole relationship in her dark stare – cheeky, flirty at the start… romantic, even passionate as it progressed… serious… _deadly_. The last wasn't his word. Bella said it. She seemed to only have muttered it to herself, maybe a tactic to get herself into the right state of mind, but it hit James hard.

'There goes the Quaffle! The match begins!' Dana Collins from the commentating box. She was in Bella's year, but in Gryffindor. She was one of Lily Evan's best friends. But Bella ignored it, pushing Lily and James and all that went with them, to the back of her mind.

'That's Kitty Rookwood with the Quaffle there, very quick dive for it, didn't even give the others a look in. A smooth pass to Regulus Black… back to Rookwood… and it's the first goal to Slytherin.' Dana's voice dropped in disappointment, but not enough to warrant a telling off from Professor Linden, who was sitting to her left.

Bella smiled to herself. One goal up and Gryffindor hadn't even had possession of the Quaffle at all. Perfect. She set about scanning for the Snitch. It was hardly a clear day, but at least there weren't any particularly low cloud, that was a good sign. James was on the other side of the pitch, doing his best not to make eye-contact with Bella. She smirked. Good. He shouldn't be making eye-contact, he didn't deserve to. A flutter of gold. Bella flicked her head round. Another flicker. She snapped back around, careful to only move her head and not her broom. It was hovering by the Ravenclaw tower of the pitch, covered with the Ravenclaw eagle. It blended in somewhat to the colouring, but she could still see it's slight movement. Now, how to approach it? It flickered impatiently, zipping from either side of the tower. It was toying with her. Only a matter of time before James realised she was watching it. Just make a move – any move. Chase it.

She picked up speed all of a sudden and shot off after the Snitch.

'And what's this? Has the Slytherin Captain spotted the Snitch? She's certainly very quick after something! And I notice Roddy Lestrange in the opposite stand… not him she's after then-'

'Miss Collins!' Linden intervened, but not before a laughter had emitted from the knowing members of Bella's year in the stands. She didn't have time to care about it right then.

Dana cleared her throat. 'Apologies, Professor… Roddy.' She paused to hide her evident amusement. 'And that's James Potter on her tail there, bit slow with the follow up, he's lagging behind. He'll need to do a bit of catching up if he wants to claim a swift victory for Gryffindor…'

James Potter was indeed on her tail. Bella allowed herself a small turn of her head to be able to see him out of the corner of her eye. He was picking up speed, but not nearly enough.

'I said, _Potter had better do some catching up_,' Dana repeated with more drive in her voice.

'Miss Collins, I do not want to have to tell you again!' Linden interjected once more. Dana sighed and held her hands up.

James was levelling with Bella now, she'd spent too much time on auto-pilot whilst listening to Dana's chatter. She pulled her head back into the game. The Snitch was gaining height now, above the stands and towers completely now, heading for clouds. Bella followed it willingly, not even thinking of the height they were now climbing into – one false move and it's lights out.

_Bang._ A sharp motion to her broom, flinging her momentarily sideways. She swung back into position. James had kicked her broom. She threw her leg out and hit his broom with more power. He flickered off course, giving Bella the chance to gain a lead once more. She could only hear the odd word from the commentary, which had averted back to the Chasers… 'Rookwood has it... that's another goal for… and there's a Bludger to… ouch that's got to… and he'll be out for the…'

She silently wondered who got hit by a Bludger, and sincerely hoped it was no one on her team. The Snitch was falling now though, tumbling back down through the grey clouds, the commentary becoming clearer and louder, and the faint colour of the stands starting to appear.

From the staff stands, a visitor observed the match. He was only a guest of the headmaster's, here for only the day, but had been invited to watch the match as well. He was a rather handsome man, barely out of school, but his eyes suggested so much anguish and turmoil. Nothing behind those eyes could be solved by anyone but a professional. But he kept it well hidden most of the time. He was completely stolen by Bella's performance, the sheer determination she was showing was incredible. He'd never seen anything like it. The other seeker was showing some promise, but the way she was dealing with him was marvellous. He'd kick her broom, and she'd kick his back twice as hard. But the speed she was going at was stunning, and yet her face showed no sense of fear at all, like nothing else in the world mattered apart from catching that Snitch. He was impressed by her.

'Bellatrix Black,' Professor Dumbledore informed him. 'Slytherin Captain.'

He nodded back, but didn't take his eyes off her.

Bella saw the Snitch start to decline further, just above the staff stand, then change its mind and continue on course. It was going to dip in a minute, she could feel it. Right above the staff stand the Snitch descended downwards, intensely fast, with Bella and James in a hot pursuit. She took another look at James, he grinned at her. She didn't return it, but simply gave him a smirk that said everything. The Snitch wasn't rising again, it was still hurtling down to the ground, she could sense James' hesitation, he wanted to pull out, he was worried he'd crash into the ground. Bella wouldn't even let herself think like that. It was getting close now, the grass of the pitch almost close enough to touch. The stands were dead silent, nervous anticipation for both seekers.

James' broom levelled and he swerved off course. Bella didn't alter hers. She could tell James was scared now, he'd very nearly lost control there, and as the Snitch started to climb again, Bella knew she needed something else.

'And that was a close call there, Black very nearly had it! And what was Potter thinking? Was that a slip of his grip on the broom back there? James Potter lose control? This is unbelievable,' Dana continued with bated breath from the box.

Bella saw the Snitch pre-plan it's moves, she'd seen it flutter it's wings like this before. It was going to do a full lap again, and it only slowed its speed on the shorter sides of the oval pitch when it did a full lap – she knew this from experience. If she could cut James off somehow, she could skip through the centre of the pitch and intersect the Snitch when it slowed down. She knew what she had to do.

The Snitch was momentarily out of vision near the Ravenclaw stands again, and she used that second wisely. She snapped her broom off course and plummeted towards the ground again, this time knowing she could go the whole way. She had James completely vexed, as he followed her into the dive, presuming that the Snitch was on the opposite side of it, when in actual fact, was still following it's lap around the edge of the pitch while they dived into the middle of it. The ground got closer once more, and James was edgy about it. He wanted to prove he wasn't scared, but he knew that with one lapse of concentra- _Smack_.

'And Potter's lost it! He's hit the ground! How in Merlin's name did that happen? He's flat out! His broom's all the way behind him! He's lost it, no way can he pick this up…'

James rolled over on the ground, clutching at his ankle. She'd kicked him, that's what happened! But she'd done it forwards and ever so subtly, so it would look like he lost control and hit the ground! She was faking the lot of it! He could only watch as Bella met the Snitch where she knew it would be, and her fist closed around it. He shut his eyes and laid his head on the ground, wishing he could just bury himself.

'And Slytherin take the match! With some more than dodgy conduct from their Captain, I hope Slytherin are happy with their win… needless to say-'

'_Collins_!'

'Sorry, Professor.'

Bella cast a look back at James as she landed neatly on the grass, her team close behind her, celebrating.

'Bad luck, Potter.' She smirked at him. 'No hard feelings.'

As the Slytherin team left the pitch and crowds started to disperse, James finally realised how much he'd let her get to him. He never intended this to happen. He never even intended it to go on this long, he just got carried away…


	14. Lost Control

The Slytherin common room was buzzing when the team finally got back. Bella was proud of her win, yes, but she was even more proud of the win she had over Potter. She was one up on him now. As she walked through the common room, she lost track of how many pats on the back and how many times 'well done' or 'great game' was shouted to her. She tried to smile back at everyone who'd congratulated her, but it's hard to direct your attention to the whole of your house. She tried, and that's all that mattered to her. Finally, she found Lucy at the very back of the common room, sitting by a window, the water from the lake bubbling past. Lucy grinned at her.

'Well done,' She smirked. 'saw you kick his broom though, I know the ref didn't, but I did.' She laughed, she couldn't help it.

Bella shrugged and sat down opposite her. 'So what? _He lost control,_ remember? That's what Collins said.'

Lucy beamed at her and was about to say something else, when Abby flew at them, almost knocking over the table as she crashed into it.

'Tom… Riddle,' She panted. 'he's here… just seen him… near Dumbledore's… office…' She took a deep breath, evidently having run all the way back there. 'Congrats, by the way.' She said quickly to Bella. But she was already on her feet.

'Dumbledore's office?' She checked again. Abby nodded, too breathless to repeat herself. 'Thanks.' Bella muttered, before she took off again and exited the common room. If Riddle was back, she intended to know about it. He was her ex-Quidditch Captain, after all, he might want to know that they just beat Gryffindor under her lead. Maybe he'd be proud of her. Although, she doubted if he actually remembered her, she was only on the team for one year while he was Captain, and she was only in her third year. She was young, why would he have had any need to remember her?

Dumbledore's office was sealed, the golden eagle stairwell was all the way up, indicating that he had a guest. Riddle. Bella sighed. So, she'd just have to wait for him. After hanging around for about five minutes, she realised that it might look a bit odd if she was just waiting for him outside like some kind of stalker. Which she was. But still. She'd have to create some kind of apparently coincidental run-in. She left her current waiting spot and wandered over to the other side of the corridor, which had a good view of the office stairs, so she could still see him leaving. But… how to accidently meet him? Maybe if she just walked by, he'd recognise her? After all, she'd always had the unruly, dark, curly hair, it was a very distinguishing feature.

'Excuse me,' Bella heard a female voice behind her. 'what are you doing?'

She spun around, well ready to simply smile at the Prefect, be recognised, and be let off. However, when she saw the red and gold crest on the robes of this Prefect, she realised it wasn't going to be so easy. Molly Prewitt was standing with one hand on her hip, the other holding a book against her chest, her long red hair flowing down onto it.

'I'm playing Quidditch.' Bella said without a hint of irony. Molly raised her eyebrows.

'Don't try and be funny with me, Black. I know your cousin, don't forget.'

Bella couldn't stop herself laughing at that. 'Yeah? Well don't forget that my gran used to have a house elf called Dipsy.'

'What?'

'Thought we were exchanging information the other didn't care about?'

Molly glared at her. 'Do you know what this book is, Black?'

'Red?'

'Very funny.'

'I know.'

'It's a book of names of students that give us attitude when we're trying to do our duties,' She opened the book slowly and flicked through the pages for effect. 'and there's a nice empty space here with your name on it.'

'Clearly not, else it wouldn't be an empty space, would it?'

Molly did not laugh, even though Bella was grinning at her. She was picking up her quill now, which had been casually lying in the centre pages. She was about to write down Bella's name, when a voice halted her.

'Bellatrix Black?' A male voice. Both girls turned and stared. It was him. Tom Riddle was standing outside the headmaster's office, addressing her. 'And you can stop writing in that book of yours,' he said to the Prefect. 'I'll take it from here.'

'And you are…?' Molly asked him rudely. Bella almost gasped. As if she was asking?

'Just leaving Professor Dumbledore's office. So I'd recommend that you trot off back to your common room.'

Molly opened her mouth to argue back, but thought better of it, turned on her heels and promptly left. Bella gaped at Tom Riddle, unable to believe what was actually happening.

'You're welcome.' He shrugged, interpreting her silence as thanks. Bella's reaction suddenly soured.

'I could have handled it myself.'

'Yes, but I was impatient.' Tom Riddle answered flatly. Bella simple stared at him. Impatient? Tom cleared his throat. 'I saw you in the match today. You played quite brilliantly.'

'Thanks.' Bella tried to stop herself smiling back into his handsome, chiselled face – but it was impossible.

He smiled back politely. 'Congratulations on the win. I see you're picking up the pieces from that disaster I hear Jen left behind?'

Bella nodded, once more trying to halt the grin that she was desperate to present.

'Well done. You were always good though, even when you were younger.' Tom smiled at her again. Bella beamed at him, she couldn't help it. He remembered her! He actually remembered!

'Do you still play?' She asked him, trying to make conversation so he didn't leave. 'I mean, you were _really_ good.'

Tom sighed. 'No, sadly. I don't really have the time these days.'

'Oh.' Bella replied. 'Because of work?'

'Yeah.'

'Is that what you were doing here? Working?'

His expression suddenly twisted for a second. It was gone as quickly as it came, returning his calm demeanour.

'I was applying for a job, actually.'

'Oh, really? Which?'

'Defence Against the Dark Arts,' He informed her. 'but I didn't get it.'

'Why?' Bella questioned, suddenly slightly outraged by this. If he'd got a teaching job, he'd be here every day!

Tom shrugged. 'Dumbledore said I wasn't suited to the position… whatever the hell that means.' He growled, his eyes greying over for a second.

'That's ridiculous! You got the Services to the School Award, surely that means something?' Bella protested angrily. Tom smirked at her sudden anger, he was actually quite proud of her. She'd changed since he knew her, but she'd changed in a good way. She'd grown; got more outspoken, more confident, and more daring. And most of all, she'd developed a challenging nature, she wanted to challenge everything she knew. And that was most definitely a good thing. He could tell all this from a small conversation, and a Quidditch match. But he wasn't just listening to the conversation, he was listening to something else, too.

'If I thought he wouldn't expel me, I'd march straight up to Dumbledore right now.' Bella told him strongly. 'But he doesn't really need an excuse to expel me.'

'You could always leave, you know.' Tom suggested casually.

'No, I couldn't,' Bella sighed. 'What would I do? Without NEWTs, who's going to give me a job?'

'I would.' He smiled sweetly at her.

'Thanks, but do you have a business?'

'In a manner of speaking. I could train you for it.'

'And what business are we talking about?'

Tom winked at her. 'Not telling.' Bella raised her eyebrows at him. 'What? Don't you trust me?' He asked her, putting on a very hurt expression.

Bella smirked at him. 'I'm not going to agree to become part of a business when I don't know what 'business' it deals in.'

'Smart girl,' Tom noted to himself. 'Well,' He continued. 'it's not necessarily a business, more like an organisation. And it's not very big yet, but it's growing. It's for a good cause, Bellatrix, trust me. And I can train you in magic skills you've never even heard of,' His voice had changed and right then she just wanted to agree to everything he was saying, and she had no idea why.

'But will it earn me any money?'

'Do you _need_ money?'

Bella shrugged. 'True.'

'Exactly. So just do it for fun.'

'Fun?'

'What's life without a bit of fun? Why not do something you enjoy?'

Bella mused over it. She would like that… But how did he know she'd enjoy it if she didn't even know what it was?

'And what would you teach me?'

Tom smirked at her, looking her up and down. His eyes returned to her face, which had now turned a considerable shade of pink. 'Magic you couldn't even dream of. Not to mention, they'd never dream of teaching here.'

Bella didn't reply. She was slowly dreaming away into Tom's words. Magic she couldn't dream of? And magic they wouldn't teach here? She was intrigued. More than intrigued. She wanted to do it. The consequences were suddenly irrelevant. She wanted to do whatever it took for Tom Riddle to teach her.

Tom smiled, a deep, meaningful smile. He knew exactly what she was thinking. And he knew he'd got her. He was already aware that she was a powerful witch, and he knew that with the correct cultivation, she could become so much more than that. She could be a weapon too powerful to even comprehend. She had elements implanted in her mind already, just waiting the grow into something else.

'So you'll teach me, then?' Bella asked eagerly.

He nodded truthfully. 'Of course. If you wish.'

'I do.'

'Very well.'

'Where and when?'

Tom studied her. Could she really be trusted with this? That was the one thing he couldn't work out about her. 'Next time you're on a Hogsmeade visit, I'll come and find you.'

'How will you know where I am?'

'I'll find you.' He repeated. Bella sighed, evidently he knew what he was talking about. It was probably best not to question him.

'I'll see you then.' Tom said with a smile. Bella couldn't help but grin back at him and nod. As he turned away from her and walked down the corridor, she couldn't help but think that _technically_ it could possibly be described as a date. Maybe. She smiled to herself.

'Miss Black,'

Bella spun around, her hand hovering over the pocket with her wand inside. Professor Dumbledore was giving her a pleasant smile as he stood there, just immerging from the shadows. She didn't smile back.

'I see you've met Mr Riddle?'

'I knew him already.' Bella replied stiffly.

'Of course, I had forgotten you played Quidditch together,' He said, once more trying the smile, and again getting nothing in return. 'what did he want with you? Friendly catch up?'

'None of your business,' She glared at him. '_Professor_.' She added spitefully.

'I suggest you go back to your common room, Bellatrix.'

'Gladly.' She turned on her heels and began storming down the corridor.

'I can retract that Captaincy, you know!' Dumbledore called after all. Bella didn't respond, as she was trying her best not to turn around and give him the finger. She was going to go back to the common room, and she knew she was, but this just seemed to be a night for being interrupted. She saw the one scene she could not watch without feeling a burning in her heart.

James and Lily were practically entwined in each other in the dungeon corridor. The main corridor. The _only_ corridor to the Slytherin common room. Bella's fist clenched involuntarily around her wand. She didn't want to use it. But she did. Her head was telling her that this was a stupid idea, but her heart was wrapped in so much anguish that it was bubbling up like lava in a volcano. She gripped her wand but refused to move it. Her whole being was making her try to hurt him, it was forcing her to take physical action. Her head started spinning, the darkened corridor becoming even darker, and the candle lights whirling around her started to fly faster and faster until they were simply a yellow blur. Like stars in the night sky.

There was a silence shattering smash. The glass of the trophy cabinet that ran the entire wall cracked and imploded, glass smashing to the floor. James and Lily broke apart instantly and retreated to the other side of the hallway. Bella didn't even notice, she wasn't noticing anything. Her knees hit the floor first, but she wasn't far behind to let herself just collapse onto the stone cold foor.


	15. Mixed Emotions

James and Lily didn't move for a minute or so, they were just standing in silence while their minds tried to make sense of what had just happened. It was unfathomable. Why would the cabinet glass suddenly smash itself into a thousand pieces? James' mind flickered back to other end of the corridor… Bella. He instinctively ran over to where she had collapsed on the floor. Lily tentatively followed him. He knelt down next to her and gently shook her. Nothing. She wasn't dead, he knew that much.

He looked up at Lily. 'What do we do with her?'

'Why are you saying that like it's our fault?' She asked him innocently. His eyes were dark and stormy, and didn't change when she said; 'Is it?' Her voice shook a little then. James forced himself to put on another expression.

'No, no, how could it be?' He re-assured her. However, James knew that it couldn't have been a coincidence that they were here when this happened. And he felt partly responsible. He assumed that he'd upset her a lot by just ditching her the way that he had, but he had never anticipated that he might have actually hurt her. He thought she was too strong to be so easily hurt.

'We'll have to call someone,' Lily suggested. 'I'll go and get Madam Pomfrey.'

'No –' James grabbed her hand to stop her going. He couldn't be left alone with her. What if she woke up? She'd kill him! 'I'll go, too.'

'James, we can't just leave her in the corridor!' Lily told him strongly. Why did she have to be so _nice_? James pleaded that for once she'd just pay attention to house rivalry, and accept that Bella was Slytherin and they'd leave. End of. But no, Lily had to be all good about it, and believing that everyone had a good side.

'You go and get Madam Pomfrey then,' Lily told him, gracefully dropping to the floor to sit beside Bella's unconscious body. 'I'll stay here with her.'

'_No_.' James told her. More than told, he ordered her.

'Well one of us is staying.'

'If she wakes up while I'm gone, what's she going to do?' James asked her. Lily's brow furrowed a bit. 'Exactly.' James added.

'I don't care.' Lily fought back. 'If she doesn't appreciate my help, then that's fine. At least I'll know that I did the right thing.'

James growled to himself. If there was one moment he wished he had his invisibility cloak, it was now.

'Fine.' He agreed. 'I won't be long. And for Merlin's sake – if she tries to pull anything, _use your wand_.'

'I'm not stupid, James.'

'I know, I know,' James took a deep breath. He was about to say something else, but decided against it, and jogged down the corridor, slowly edging out of sight.

Lily leant back against the wall. She studied Bella, while she had the chance. She knew she wasn't a nice person, or at least wasn't supposed to be. But Lily always said that _no one_ was entirely bad. No one could be pure evil. And she truly believed it. Bella looked so helpless, just lying there, that Lily was certain she wouldn't push away help if it was offered. She was pretty, Lily observed. She'd never noticed before. She had a strong jaw line and cheek bones, and her hair was to die for. Lily supposed that you never see the beauty of people you suppose to be evil, it clouds what you see. Or what you think you see. She touched her hair, letting the small curled ringlets flow through her fingers. She sat stroking her hair for a while, she thought it might help. When Lily was little, her mum used to do that whenever she was sick. It made her feel better, even if it was only in her mind.

Bella's eyes opened suddenly, and even though it was silent, Lily felt a ringing in her ears as she whipped her hand back in surprise. Her eyes were so dark, almost like a black hole into her mind. Bella stared at the ceiling for a moment, trying to work out where she was. Her eyes drifted sideways, where she could feel someone else near her. Her hand instinctively tried to reach for her wand when she saw who it was. Lily's sparkling green eyes were staring back at her, and a nervous smile embedded itself onto her lips. Bella had to look around on the floor when she couldn't find her wand.

Lily held something out to her. When Bella threw her eyes back to Lily, she realised it was her wand. As if Lily Evans was actually giving her wand back? Why? Bella slowly took it, as if she was worried it was some kind of trick.

'Thanks,' She said in a whisper, pulling herself up to sit opposite Lily.

'You're welcome.' Lily smiled back. Bella wasn't quite sure what expression she gave her back, probably somewhere between mild panic and utter confusion.

'What? I mean, why did…' Bella shook her head. She couldn't even try to pose a question when she had so many she wanted to ask all at once.

'You passed out.' Lily told her calmly. 'James has gone to get Madam Pomfrey.'

_James_. Bella's eyes must have changed then, because Lily shuffled backwards a bit, her whole body language changing. Bella blinked and looked away for a moment.

'I'm fine.' She said eventually.

'Well… just in case,' Lily said nervously. 'just to make sure.'

Bella shrugged. 'I guess.' Bella's eyes fell upon the glass cabinet, the shards of glass lying scattered around the floor. 'What happened?'

'I don't know,' Lily answered honestly. 'it just exploded. There was no reason for it, or anything.'

'Sometimes there isn't,' Bella muttered. 'with magic, and all.'

Lily looked momentarily hurt, as Bella seemed to make an obvious reference to her blood status.

'No, not like that.' Bella told her quickly. 'Just… in general. Didn't mean it like… well, you know.'

Lily smiled at her again. 'It's okay. Nice of you to add that though, most people don't.'

'I know.' Bella agreed. It was mostly people she knew who didn't bother. Bella wouldn't usually, but she genuinely hadn't meant it in that way. And after all, Lily had opted to stay with her, and she wasn't being hostile in the slightest.

They sat there in silence for a while, not really knowing what else was to be said. Bella was trying to convince herself that she could still hate Lily, if she _really_ tried. But it was becoming difficult. She seemed like such a nice person, and that was the only thing Bella could find to hate about her.

'Listen,' Bella said finally. 'there's something you should know. I don't know if he told you this or not, but James-'

She was cut short by the sound of footsteps returning to the corridor. She wanted to kick herself. If she'd have started speaking a few minutes ago, rather than sitting there thinking about it, then she would have already said it by now! She couldn't carry on, not now James was back. She sighed and sat back against the wall, defeated.

Lily was still looking at her like she expected her to continue, but when James appeared and Bella shook her head, Lily unexpectedly wiped any trace of that unfinished sentence off her face. Bella was shocked that she'd do that, but played along with it all the same. Madam Pomfrey knelt down beside her, and roughly pulled Bella's face into a position where she could see her eyes.

'I'm _fine_,' Bella told her through gritted teeth, shaking her head and forcefully standing up.

'You can come with me, just to make sure, Miss Black.' Madam Pomfrey told her, although it didn't sound at all polite.

'How about I come find you if I'm not alright?'

'I'd rather not have to fill in the paper work,' she grabbed Bella's wrist. 'come along, now.'

'God's sake.' Bella muttered, as she allowed herself to be dragged along the corridor. 'Thanks Lily.' She called back, mainly to spite James. The stunned look on his face was priceless.

'You're welcome!' Lily shouted back, a smooth told-you-so grin slinking onto her lips. She raised her eyebrows at James, who was still staring at her like he couldn't believe what he'd just seen. 'What?' Lily smiled sweetly.

'She just… I mean… you did… Bloody hell.' James concluded. Lily smirked and walked off from him. It took him a minute, but he jogged after her once his senses had returned.

Bella sat on the bed she'd been allocated, and refused to use it. She was now waiting for Madam Pomfrey to go to bed so that she could sneak back to the dorms. She glanced at the clock. It was one in the morning and she still hadn't left! Bella sighed.

'You might as well go to sleep!' Madam Pomfrey shouted to her. 'I know what you Slytherin girls are like, won't do as you're told! I'm not falling for it again!' Bella knew she was referring to Lucy.

All of a sudden, Madam Pomfrey stood up from her seat. She had a blank expression on her face, and all the traces of anger had completely vanished. Bella stared, too stunned to move. She walked steadily across the hospital wing, and entered her own quarters. The door shut behind her, leaving Bella wondering what on earth had just happened. She had literally just said she wasn't leaving! Maybe it was a trick… maybe she was only doing it so she could catch Bella making a run for it. But what would be the point?

She scanned the room for a second. There was no one there. Everything was absolutely still, just like before. She smiled to herself. Well, there was no point in wasting time. She quickly got up and sped out of the hospital wing, being careful not to make any noise, and took the first flight of stairs she could find.

Once she was on the first floor, and nothing untoward had happened, Bella knew she was safe. That was it now, she'd done it. Thankfully. Now she just had to avoid teachers who were out of bed for some reason, and she was good to go. However, something caught her eye. There was a light on in the furthest classroom on the first floor corridor. She tried to stop herself being intrigued by it, but it was impossible. She silently took her shoes off and slipped them into her school bag, so she could creep down the corridor without making a sound. She ducked under the window at the top of the door and dropped to the floor to stare through the crack under the door.

James Potter, Remus Lupin, Peter Pettigrew, and her cousin, Sirius Black, were all sitting around a table in the classroom, just having a pleasant little chat by the looks of it. She applied herself a little more to hear what they were saying.

'I don't know what happened,' James told them. 'she just collapsed! I assume she saw me and Lily, then the cabinet smashed, and she was on the floor. It's really strange.' Bella had a very bad feeling they were talking about her little episode earlier.

'That's odd,' Lupin replied. 'really weird. She was alright though, I take it?'

'Yeah, she was fine,' James answered him, although a confused expression was still present on his face. 'I left her and Lily so I could go and get Madam Pomfrey, and when I came back she was sitting up and talking to her.'

'Talking to Lily?'

'Yeah!' James exclaimed. 'Actually talking to her! And afterwards, right, she called back to say thanks to her!'

'Bloody hell,' Sirius muttered. 'that's even stranger than her passing out. She was probably drunk or something.'

Bella inwardly growled at him.

James shrugged. 'Probably.'

'Er, guys…' Peter Pettigrew spoke in his little, frightened voice. 'Look…' The all peered closer at whatever was in the table between them, and then slowly they all turned to stare at the door. Bella swallowed. They couldn't possibly know she was there! She sprung up from the floor, still careful to avoid the window, and pressed herself against the wall behind the door. Should she stay and confront them? Quickly, she made the decision to spring into the next classroom along and duck behind the door, out of sight. She heard them all leave the room next door, all whispering to each other about where she could have gone.

'It said she was here…' Pettigrew mumbled, now sounded slightly embarrassed.

'I know,' James told him. 'we all saw it. She can't have vanished!'

'She'll have made a run for it,' Lupin said. 'we best check near the dungeons, it'll be the first place she'd go.' Bella smirked. How wrong he was. She heard their footsteps trail off into nothingness, before she slowly opened the door. They were definitely gone. She crept along the corridor again and entered the room where she'd previously been spying on them. She saw what they had all been looking at. It was a map. Bella walked closer, so she could see what was written on it. Her eyes widened and stopped herself gasping. It had everyone's names on it she could think of. All the students, teachers, you name it. It was a map of Hogwarts and everyone in it. She saw her own name in the centre of the map, standing right in the classroom she was in. James and his friends' names were all on the dungeon corridor, exactly where they said they would go. She swallowed. This was amazing. It showed all the passageways, too! Like the one Bella had used to go the astronomy tower… where James had followed her. So this was how he'd known she was there. He'd used this map. This was a powerful thing to have in your possession… and devastating if it should fall into the wrong hands. She smiled to herself. She wanted this map. It seemed to have every single passageway Hogwarts had, and with this she could find a way to meet Tom Riddle in Hogsmeade, even when they didn't have visits scheduled. She glanced back down at the map and bit her lip. She'd spent too long in her thoughts. James Potter's little black nametag was now hovering in the doorway of the classroom she was standing in. He was alone. She shook her hair over her shoulder and spun around to face him.

'I see you found our map.' James said flatly.

'Yes.'

'I'll be taking it back now, thanks.' He walked over to her and slowly reached across her to take the map. He took out his wand. Bella's hand hovered over the pocket where she kept hers, should she need to use it. However, James held his wand up to the map, not her.

'Mischief managed.' He knew there was no way to say it quietly so she wouldn't hear, but if she didn't know how to open it, it was irrelevant. Bella continued to simply stare at him, still in awe of the map.

'Where did you get that?' She asked finally, unable to hold it off any longer.

'We didn't.' James shrugged.

'What?'

'We made it.'

'_Made it_?'

'Something wrong with your hearing? Yes, we made it.' James snapped, stuffing the map into his back. He threw it to the side of the room suddenly, almost startling Bella. He still had his wand though, and he kept it by his side like he was planning to use it. She didn't touch hers, but kept her hand close to the pocket it was kept in.

'Bellatrix,' James addressed her, taking a few paces closer. Bella got the sudden feeling that she should be backing off, but didn't. Inwardly she was disappointed that he wasn't calling her Bella anymore. 'why were so nice to Lily yesterday?' She didn't reply. 'Don't think I don't know. You're just going to lull her into a false friendship and humiliate her, preying on her kind nature. I won't have it, you know. I'll stop you if you even so much as stand near her.'

Bella laughed, she couldn't help it. All that tension there'd been had completely evaporated into one evil cackle. He was just so funny when he tried to act all tough!

'Don't bother, James,' Bella drew breath once she'd managed to stop herself laughing. 'I was actually just being nice. Because, unlike you, your girlfriend seems like a really nice person. _Genuine_.'

'She's not my girlfriend.' James retorted quickly, almost fiercely.

'Oh? You could have fooled me.'

'Seems it's not difficult to do.'

Bella didn't even bother trying to calm herself down from that low comment. She drew her wand with the light speed that came from nothing but practice, and aimed it squarely at James, non-verbally disarming him. She caught his wand without even moving. He swallowed, realising he'd taken it one step too far.

'You want it to be that way, James? Have it your way, then.' Bella told him, filling the gap between them. She knew what was happening then, and she almost thought she was controlling it. The windows imploded. Just like she expected them too. She was starting to use this to her advantage. James cowered to the floor and pulled himself into a corner. The second set of windows smashed, letting the night sky flood into the room, the full moon directly behind Bella made her hair look even blacker as it whirled around her in the wind.

'Oh shit, oh shit,' James' face was so scared now, Bella could scarcely believe it. He was grabbing for his bag now, which was odd to say the least. Bella turned round, all she could see was the full moon, what could possibly have spooked James so badly? He was pulling the cloak out of his bag now, and Bella now knew there was somewhere he was meant to be. She wasn't having this, there'd been too many secrets. She flicked her wand at the open door of the classroom and it slammed shut.

'You're not leaving until you tell me what's going on!' She shouted it, but all the rage James had unleashed was now gone, scared away by whatever was eating at James.

'I have to go,' He muttered, swinging the cloak over himself.

'_No_, you don't. Tell me!'

The door opened as James unlocked it from under the cloak. And he was gone, indefinitely lost in the space of the school. Or grounds. Grounds? She slowly walked to the spaces where the windows had been, wondering silently whether anyone had heard the racket they'd made. She peered over the ledge, being careful not to touch the shards of broken glass that were still spiking up from the window. She could make out the outlines of three people way out near the forest… and then a fourth, running to catch them up. She glanced at the sky, just to see a cloud pulling away from the moon, allowing it to throw the full force of its shine upon the castle. There was an almighty howl, and Bella found herself gasping. She couldn't help it, it scared her, and she'd admit that. But not as much was what she saw that followed. The four boys on the ground were no longer there, but in their place was a huge, shaggy black dog, a graceful, muscular deer, something small on the grass… and a werewolf. An unmistakably monstrous and howling werewolf. Bella didn't hesitate, and it was the first time she'd admit she was scared.


	16. Leverage

Bella sat in the deserted library by herself, tucked into a corner with her knees up to her chest. She didn't want to go back the dorms, she didn't want to see anyone at all. Her mind was confused, and she was still only slightly less than terrified. She bit her lip subconsciously and dragged her hair over one shoulder, then wrapped her cloak tightly around herself. She hated to admit how frightened she was, and she made a silent promise to herself never to admit it to anyone who could hear her.

Footsteps in the library made her jump, and bring her knees up to her as far as they'd go, in some kind of desperate attempt to protect herself. She waited, wide-eyed for the owner of the footsteps to creep into what little light there was. Then, emerging from the shadows, Severus Snape skulked onto the scene; his little scrawny face glaring at her.

'Snape? What are you doing here?'

'I was waiting for someone.' He told her, still keeping his ground, hovering by a bookshelf.

'Who?' Bella inquired, her guard still up defensively.

'None of your business, Black.' He retorted, though his confidence was hidden somewhere in the books behind him.

Bella sighed and chose to ignore him.

'What are you doing here?' He turned the question back on her.

Her attention snapped back to him. 'Just sitting here. Evidently.'

'Very clever.'

'That is what I'm doing, Snape. I've got no other reason for being here.' Bella told him honestly, not really caring whether or not he believed it.

'Very well,' Snape sniffed nervously. 'just keep to yourself about it.'

'I was, thank you very much,' Bella replied stiffly. 'until you showed up.'

'Well,' Snape paused to find words that wouldn't make him look stupid. 'go back to it then.'

Bella didn't even reply to him, she just did what he told her to and stared back off in the opposite direction. She could still see Snape's skinny figure from in her peripheral vision, unable to block him out like she wanted to. However, he was no threat to her, so she left him be.

'Severus?' She heard a whispered female voice from somewhere close by. She recognised it, but couldn't put a name to it.

'Lily, I'm here.' Snape replied, taking a few steps closer to the darkness at the front of the library. Bella's eyes widened. Lily? She was meeting Snape in a darkened library in the early hours of the morning? Bella knew that Lily and Snape were friends, but this was absurd. Bella wouldn't meet any of her friends at this hour unless it was something spectacularly important.

Lily Evan's perfect little glowing eyes fell on Bella. She managed a weak, if not confused, smile.

'Hi, Bellatrix,' She said almost falsely, wearing an awkward smile. 'what are you doing here?'

'Just sitting around,' Bella told her. 'couldn't sleep.' It was probably true, except she hadn't tried to sleep.

'Oh,' Lily smiled. 'hope you're okay.'

'Yeah, I'm fine.' Bella returned. Snape began to look ever more disgruntled as the conversation had elapsed. He was glaring to intensely at Bella that she thought his head might explode, when she eventually turned to look at him.

'I'll just head back to my dorm,' Bella said stiffly, answering Snape's harsh stare.

'Oh, don't leave on my account, please.' Lily stepped in, looking considerably guilty as though it was her fault. Bella smiled at her innocence. She was about to reply, when Snape eventually lost his rag with the whole thing.

'I'll just go then!' He exclaimed. 'I'll leave you girls alone! I'll just let a mudblood stay alone in a darkened library in the middle of the night with a Slytherin pureblood, shall I? Oh, wise move that is,' He turned back to Lily, his eyes practically burning. 'if she's killed you by morning, well, don't say I didn't warn you!' And with that he stormed past her and stomped out of the library.

Lily's bottom lip quivered slightly. Bella didn't really know how to handle a situation like this, she was used to strong girls who cried when they were angry, rather than when they were upset. She sat un-moving for a moment, as Lily began to cry. Bella finally decided to get up, and tentatively put her arm around her. She led her back to the table Bella had been sitting at and placed her in the opposite chair. Not really sure of what else to do, she lightly gave her a tap on the shoulder, then returned to her original seat.

'Don't let it upset you…' Bella said quietly to Lily.

She took a quick gasp of air and wiped her eyes with her hands. 'But, it's just like… every time he's mad at me, he pulls the blood status card. I don't think he realises that just because he's mad at me, it doesn't count if he calls me a… a… well, you know. But it still hurts, Bellatrix.' Lily inhaled a couple more times before the tears stopped.

'Yeah…' Bella didn't really know what else to say, she could hardly comment on this issue! She called people mudbloods all the time!

'I'm sorry,' Lily began. 'I shouldn't burden you with this…'

'Lily! Don't apologise for this!' Bella exclaimed, hardly able to believe what she was hearing. 'You're not burdening me with this, I'm happy to listen. Honestly,'

'Thanks,' Lily choked. 'glad someone is. James doesn't seem to be very good at dealing with emotional things.'

'No, he really doesn't.' Bella muttered, her whole expression suddenly turning dark, just like it had that night she'd passed out. Her dark eyes seemed to become almost completely black. Lily shuddered and then regained her ability to speak.

'I'm sorry,' She started. Bella shook her head and returned back to her normal composure. 'but… do you know James, at all? Because you seem to, I don't know… react, every time I say his name.'

Bella paused, contemplating what to say next. She was going to be honest with Lily before, and she had very nearly told her, before _he_ came back. She bit her lip. Lily Evans seemed like such a nice person, and to cripple her relationship with information such as this?

'In all honesty, I'm not sure I ought to say what my connection with James is…' Bella said with a sigh.

'Please.' Lily nodded at her, and gave her the kind of smile that suggested that on some level, she already knew.

'Okay,' Bella agreed reluctantly. 'we used to see each other, in secret – obviously. And it ended rather badly…'

'How so?'

'He started seeing you without breaking up with me.'

'_What_?' Lily breathed, her eyes widening to what seemed impossible. 'He'd just do that… I mean… what…' She sharply inhaled. 'Oh God.'

'I'm really sorry, Lily…'

'Don't be,' She replied quietly. 'It's James who should be sorry. I knew he was a bit mischievous, and maybe that's why I liked him… but this is just ridiculous! I don't know what to do…' She sighed and met Bella's eye contact. 'I feel like I want to kill him.'

'Guess that's something we've got in common.' Bella smirked. Lily's unusually cold expression broke and she smiled back.

Surprisingly, Bella wasn't actually tired the next morning. She'd taken an ever so slight detour to walk Lily back to her common room… well, it was a seven floor detour, actually, but still. She'd then gone back to her own dormitory and lay awake until everyone else woke up. They didn't even question where she'd been, just assumed she'd come in after they went to sleep.

She sat at the breakfast table, next to Lucy, with Abby on her other side. She wasn't hungry in the slightest, although the events she'd witnessed the night before seemed to be fading the tiniest bit. She was levitating her dry cereal piece by piece out of the bowl to give herself something to do.

'Bellatrix, don't play with your food.' She heard the cool and calm voice of Professor Dumbledore behind her. She dropped the piece of cereal back into the bowl and turned around to look at him.

'With all due respect, Professor-'

'Which means you are about to give me none of the due respect.'

'- I'm not sure what I do with my food is any concern of yours.' Bella raised an eyebrow at him, showing him that she was most certainly not intimidated by his authority.

'It will be.' He replied, a sad glaze appearing in his eyes. And with that he walked away. Bella rolled her eyes and turned back to the table.

'Crack-pot old fool, that one.' She mumbled to Lucy. She laughed and nodded back. Bella's smile didn't last long. She saw Remus Lupin enter the Great Hall with Sirius. She couldn't help but shudder, as her mind replayed last night's drama. She swallowed hard and tried not to let her face show her obvious fear.

'Bella, are you okay?' Lucy asked her quietly, trying not to alert anyone else.

'Fine,' Bella replied absently. Amidst all her fear, she'd just had a brilliant idea. She quickly scanned the room for James Potter and Peter Pettigrew – they were nowhere in sight. So they must still be in the castle somewhere. Bella grinned to herself. If she told James what she'd seen, that would be the perfect bargaining point, she could reason the map off him by threatening to tell everyone about Remus Lupin's little affliction! It was fool-proof. And she knew how scared Pettigrew was of her, so his part in all this would be pain-staking easy. She just needed the right leverage.

'I gotta go,' She quickly told Lucy, who had no choice to but accept it, because Bella didn't wait around for a reply.

As she left the Great Hall, she scanned the corridor for James. As she'd expected – nothing. She then remembered that room she'd seen them in before, the night previously. She headed up to the first floor, and found the classroom completely empty. She kicked the door in frustration. Now what? But in her moment of thought, she heard his voice. James. She slid into the door of the classroom and peered around it, just in time to see James and Peter Pettigrew walking down the main corridor.

'We need to get the rest of the ingredients, and then we can start it, okay?' James told him methodically.

'Okay…' Pettigrew mumbled. 'Where from?'

'Slughorn's cupboard – obviously.'

'I was afraid you'd say that.'

'Shut-up, Wormtail.'

He shut-up. Bella smirked to herself at the control James had over him. She quietly left the classroom and followed them to the dungeons, they were literally walking right into her home territory! This was too good. She knew that there was a small chamber just next to the store cupboard, and it had an inside lock. There had been a few nights last year when she was with Roddy that it had been useful… Bella shook her head and eliminated those thoughts. She didn't want them anyway, let alone right then.

As James and Pettigrew entered the store cupboard, Bella took her place by the door, lying in wait for them. She held her wand in a tight grip in her hand, ready to use it. They took a few minutes, but evidently knew what they were looking for, as they re-immerged in a short time. Bella non-verbally disarmed them. She pointed her wand straight at James' head, then flicked it towards the room next door, as she pocketed their wands. James obeyed her and Pettigrew followed him. Bella shut the door behind her, then locked it.

'I saw something last night, Potter,' Bella started in somewhat of a snarl.

'No shit.' James answered coolly. She rolled her eyes. Pettigrew on the other hand was quivering at his side, shaking almost violently, and occasionally emitting a whimpering noise.

'Shut-up, Wormtail.' Bella emulated what James had said earlier. Pettigrew didn't seem to question it, as evidently he was used to hearing it. James, however, gave Bella quizzical look.

'What did you just say?'

'I was hoping you could tell me.' She recalled what she'd seen written on the map the night before. '"Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs." Fancy elaborating?' James glared at her and said noting. 'Okay then. I'm going to guess that Prongs is you… you make a fine stag, by the way – although it is a bit of an ego-trip, isn't it? That's one step down from calling yourself a stallion.'

James' glare intensified. Bella smirked, glad she was having the desired effect. 'And my cousin… he'd be Padfoot, wouldn't he? A dog, is it? And you-' She turned her wand rapidly to Pettigrew, he let out a small shriek. '_Shut-up, Wormtail_!' She grinned and laughed to herself slightly manically. She served a chilled grin to James. 'A rat, a mouse? Something small and un-important like that.'

'And,' Bella continued. 'saving the best until last – Moony. That's got to be Lupin, right? That calm, cool, helpful guy that always seems to care about everyone else… is a werewolf.'

'That's enough, Bella,' James finally spoke, his voice gruff and aggressive. 'just leave it now.'

'I haven't even reached the point of this chat, yet!' She giggled, flicking her wand towards a shelf above Pettigrew's head. It tilted sideways and a small book slipped off the edge and dropped almost comically onto his head. He whimpered again and looked at James to do something. James didn't break his glare with Bella.

'I want that map.' She said simply.

'No.' James replied identically.

'_Or_, I'll tell everyone I can about Remus Lupin's little secret.' Bella gave him the ultimatum.

'Go ahead,' James shrugged, although Bella suspected he was bluffing. 'Professor Dumbledore knows anyway, so do all the staff. He'll stop you dead in your tracks if you try.'

'I don't think you quite realise the power of gossip in this school, James,' Bella chuckled. 'I only have to tell one person for everyone to find out.'

James seemed to have forgotten that factor, as his un-nerved expression dropped for a second. 'Well you're not having that map. Take whatever you want, just not that map.'

'And hence my second factor of persuasion,' Bella took a step forward as if to indicate this second proposition, her wand still raised towards James' head. She shifted her gaze to Pettigrew for a moment. 'you may want to cover your ears, this might get a bit personal.' She giggled to herself at her little joke, before drawing her attention back to James again. 'I have seen you naked, Potter. So if you're not bothered about having me spread rumours about your friends, what about yourself? Especially with your new girlfriend…' Bella pouted. 'Be a shame for her to hear it from gossip that you asked another girl to marry you, and slept with her…'

'But you're putting yourself out there with that too, aren't you?' James asked, confused. 'You'd be spreading gossip about _yourself_ in the process…' He thought he'd found a loop-hole in her plan, but he hadn't.

She laughed coldly. 'I don't think so. James, you forget that people already think I'm a slag. And I really don't care. What have I got to lose? Absolutely nothing. I'm Captain of my Quidditch team, so they can't kick me off. People are already scared of me, is that really going to change if they found out I slept with you? I don't think so. I mean, let's be honest, I could just call you _target practice_…'

James made a shuffle forwards, as if he was going to make a swing for her. His fist flew into the air, but Bella ducked, her quick reflexes taking over. She grabbed his arm in mid-air and snapped it behind James' back in a flash.

'Try anything like that again, Potter, and I won't just pull your arm,' She licked his ear simply because she could. 'I'll break it.' James didn't even struggle, or even react when she licked him. She giggled, and pushed him back against the wall, forcing herself against him.

'You'll give me that map, else I'll take it by force.' She whispered, her face literally directly in front of his. She could still see Pettigrew in her peripheral vision, flicked her wrist to aim her wand at him. 'Don't move an inch.' She told him, although not moving her eyes from James. Pettigrew froze and screwed his eyes up to stop himself running the risk of looking at her in the wrong way.

'You're out of control, Bellatrix.' James told her hotly.

'Give me that map, and I'll re-gain my control,' She bit her lip for a second. 'if you want me to.' She was enjoying playing with James like this, she didn't even realise she would do. But she wasn't doing any harm, it's not as if he was going to return her actions, so she might as well intimidate him on a whole new level. James took a split second to think, before he realised that he only way he might be able to beat her, was at her own game. He kissed her. He expected that to give him a moment of time, at least. But it did no such thing. Bella almost knew he would do it, and she used that time he'd created during the kiss, to move her wand and hold it pointed under his chin. She left his lips.

'You've seen what I can do without a wand, care to see what I can do with one?' She smirked at him.

James raised an eyebrow. 'Oh, I think we both know what you can do… with a _wand_.'

Bella shrugged at his attempt at banter. She lowered her wand to an area far more delicate. 'Yeah. And I think you can find out more, if you like.' The colour had instantly drained from James' face as he realised what she was threatening.

'The slightest little spell and it's lights-out downstairs.' Bella warned him. James nodded meekly. 'So – the map? Where is it?'

'Inside pocket of my robes.' James said in a surprisingly high voice. Bella gave him an amused look, before gently pushing her hand into his robes and into the pocket. Her hand found the map and dragged it out.

'Thank-you.' She smiled, then kissed him on the cheek, if only to make the whole event that little bit more memorable for him. She stepped back wards and began backing towards the door, her wand still aimed at them. Pettigrew opened one eye and peered at her nervously. She ignored him.

'You two will wait exactly where you are,' Bella instructed them. 'then I'll throw your wands back into the room.' She unlocked the door behind her back and opened it. She left the room, still watching them, quickly slid their wands into the room and sprinted down the corridor, right into the Slytherin common room, it was in such close proximity, it was perfect. She grinned to herself. Now she had the map. It showed the passageways to Hogsmeade. It showed her a way to meet Tom Riddle any time she wanted to. Her grin widened. He'd be so pleased with her when she told him at the weekend. She jogged up to her dorm to hide the map somewhere safe, feeling like she'd got the ultimate step-up on James Potter. And it felt good.


	17. Lesson One

Hogsmeade weekend arrived, finally. Bella could barely sleep the night before, she was just so filled with anticipation for what Tom Riddle was going to teach her! She hadn't told anyone about what he'd said to her, or that she even saw him on the corridor that night. No one had asked any questions because they didn't see her return, so either they assumed she did see him, and that's why she was late, or assumed she didn't and she'd spent all night moping about it. Either way, the news of her little accident in the dungeon corridor had not spread any further than Lily, James and his friends. Although, the mystery of why Madam Pomfrey got up and left the room, allowing to Bella to leave, was still confusing her. It played on her mind when she had nothing to think about. When she went to bed, at that point where you're just about to go to sleep, it crept up on her, replaying itself like a movie, slow motion so she could figure it out. But it was to no avail. She just could not work out why it had happened. She knew she ought to let it go, because it was probably nothing; Madam Pomfrey could have remembered she left something there and gone back for it – it could be anything. But, she still had that feeling that fowl play was involved, and she couldn't place why.

It was cold outside, bitterly so. Bella had on her thick woolly tights, under her denim shorts, her hooded jacket was zipped up all the way, and she pulled her scarf tighter around herself. Lucy was walking with her, although she was acting more distracted than usual.

'Alright?' Bella asked her eventually, as they reached the end of the path into the town. Lucy nodded meekly.

'Something's not right.' She murmured, staring around her.

'How so?'

'I'm not sure,' Lucy bit her lip and tucked her hair behind one ear. 'I can't place what. Just… something.' She turned to stare at the cloudy sky. 'Something's changing.' She decided finally.

Bella didn't answer her. She could hear her own pulse in her ears, she was just begging Lucy not to have found out about Tom Riddle. She hated lying to her friends. Lucy in particular. Close friends were just horrible to lie to. Even as horrible to lie to as sisters. Something moving caught her eye, right in the corner of her eye. Just inside an alley way on the far right of the town, was Tom Riddle. Leaning casually against the wall, showed by the shadows, a cheeky smirk on his lips. Bella felt herself blushing again, she just hoped she could blame it on the cold weather.

'Luce, I have to go,' Bella said abruptly. Lucy snapped around to her, the trance like observation state she'd been in had broken instantly.

'Why? I thought we were going to the Three Broomsticks?' Lucy seemed slightly hurt by this. And yes, Bella had agreed to go, but there were a lot of other people going, so she assumed she'd be able to get out of it.

'I remembered something I left back at the castle,' Bella lied quickly and flawlessly. 'and besides,' she changed the subject so Lucy couldn't ask her what she'd left behind. 'everyone's going, so you're not going to be on your own.' Lucy opened her mouth as if to protest. 'Alex is going, you know. I heard him telling Roddy, yesterday. He was asking if you were going to be there.' That part was actually true, she had heard Alex asking that. Lucy's eyes lit up slightly.

'Really? He said that?'

'Yeah.' Bella grinned at her.

'Well… okay,' Lucy shrugged. 'I guess I'll see you later?'

'Sure,' Bella smiled at her. As Lucy turned around and began walking towards the centre of Hogsmeade, Bella made a slow pace as if she was going back to the castle, but the second Lucy was out of sight, she spun back around. She inconspicuously wandered down the alley way and met Tom. He looked even handsomer than he had before. He had on a shirt, and no tie, the first two buttons un-done, and hidden by a navy scarf. His military jacket seemed to just glide with him when he moved, and for a moment, the gracefulness of his movement mesmerised her.

'Hey, Bella,' He greeted her. She smiled at him, trying not to look too eager. Although, in her mind, she couldn't wait to show him the map in her bag. However, the fact still stood that she didn't know how to open it. She knew how James had closed it, she heard him say 'mischief managed' but she had no idea how to open it. Would Tom believe her, about what the map could do? She'd never considered that.

'Are you okay?' Tom asked her, leading her through the alley and further away from civilisation. Bella swallowed and took a last glance at people walking past the entrance to the alley, before they turned a corner and she realised how alone they really were.

'Yeah,' She breathed. 'fine.'

'You can trust me, you know.' Tom re-assured her. He didn't touch her, in his head, he wanted to put his arm around her to comfort her, but he knew that if she didn't trust him, it would only spook her out even more.

'I know,' Bella replied. 'I just don't know _how_ I know I can.'

Tom smiled warmly at her. 'Because I'm not hiding anything from you.'

'You didn't tell me what you "organisation" was. You wouldn't specify.' Bella reminded him, her mind working over-time to analyse everything she knew of him.

'I had to know you were interested. And now that I know you are, I will explain everything. We'll just get to a safe place, and then you can ask all the questions you like. I might even teach you a few things.' He gave her that cheeky smile that made her insides just melt.

'Okay.' She couldn't find anything else to say, but she had a feeling that the smile she was no longer able to hide, said everything for her.

Tom led her down a few steps and into a door under the street. It led to a small, dimly lit room. The walls were all made of dark stone, and the only thing in the room was a small desk, lit with a flimsy desk lamp. Tom quietly shut the door behind them.

'What is this place?' Bella asked him, almost afraid to take a step further into the room.

'It's only for the time being,' Tom stated. 'it was the closest place I could find to train you… without being seen.' He added with a smirk. Bella smiled back at him.

'So,' Bella tried to ask a question.

'Sit down,' Tom invited her, pulling up a chair from the opposite side of the room, and placing it on the other side of the desk. 'please.' He held the chair out for her, and Bella was instantly reminded of the kind of chivalry you only saw in a film. This was the sort of person her parents expected her to marry. And she thought it over for a moment, if Tom Riddle proved to be as nicer person as he seemed to be, she wouldn't mind marrying him either. He slid into the seat at the desk, wordlessly telling her to ask her question now.

'So,' Bella repeated. 'what sort of organisation is it?'

Tom smiled. 'It's just a group of like-minded people, meeting together to achieve a common goal,' he explained in a very business-like manner. 'it's a belief I think you'd share.'

'Oh? And what belief is that?' She raised her eyebrows at him. 'You're not trying to get me to join a cult, or something, are you?'

Tom chuckled. 'No, no, nothing like that.'

'And the belief you all share?'

The smiled wiped clean off his face and his eyes became so dark they almost just looked like slits into his mind. 'That mudbloods are scum.' He whispered sinisterly. Bella felt a shiver fly up her spine.

'I'd second that.' Bella agreed. It was true, entirely so, but the tiny nagging voice in her head was screaming out Lily Evans' name. She was such a lovely person, and she was a mudblood.

'Thought so.' Tom smiled at her, subconsciously willing her to believe it herself as much as she said she did. He knew there were doubts in her mind, he could see it. She didn't doubt what she was saying, as such, there was only a tiny little inkling that she could be wrong. It would be easy to correct. People with insecurities are easy to corrupt.

'So,' Tom continued. 'how about I teach you a little something?' He watched as Bella's eyes lit up slightly. She tried to hide it, but it made him like her that little bit more because she wanted to hide it.

They both stood up, and Tom drew his wand; Bella held hers loosely by her side.

'I'm going to hazard a guess that you're good at Defence Against the Dark Arts?' Tom said. Bella smiled and nodded, still excited as to what he was going to show her. He smirked. 'Thought so. Well, that's good news.'

'Might as well start with something simple and useful.' Tom continued, taking a step back from Bella in order to demonstrate what he intended to teach her. 'A Disillusionment charm.' Bella nodded but said nothing. Truth was, she'd never done a disillusionment charm before, she'd seen them trying at school, reading out a charms book, but she never tried it herself. She'd always held the belief that it was better to be unnoticeable than invisible. Tom sensed her slight disappointment when he suggested this, and he knew she'd never done it before. But after all, what's the point in teaching someone something they already know?

'It's non-verbal,' He added. 'I assume you're fairly handy with those? Assuming Professor Slughorn still likes to give tips to his brightest and favourite students?' He gave her a cheeky smile. For a second Bella was stuck staring at his chiselled features, locked in his gaze – but she snapped out of it.

'Yeah,' She agreed. 'yeah, he teaches us some non-verbal stuff. Nothing too complex, though…'

'You've got nothing to worry about.' Tom assured her calmly. 'Now, I'll show you what to do, okay? And what's going to happen, is that I'm going to apparently disappear for a moment, then I'll reverse the spell and be back in sight.' Bella nodded again. Tom gave her another smile, as he raised his wand, gave it a sharp flick, and he seemingly vanished completely. Bella stared in amazement, although she had no idea if she was looking at him or not.

'Shit!' Bella exclaimed, as Tom re-appeared directly in front of her, with barely an inch between their faces. She blushed slightly at her shock, but grinned at him all the same. He took a step back, realising he may have over-stepped the boundaries.

'Impressed?' He asked, straightening his military jacket.

Bella raised an eyebrow. 'I'm not easily impressed, Mr. Riddle.' Tom smirked at her, evidently this was a good answer.

'Good,' He replied. 'then you won't be easily disappointed.' He added slightly coldly. Bella nearly shivered, but he was back into his normal self after a moment, almost like it had never happened. 'Your turn.'

She nodded back at him and raised her own wand.

'Now, there's a knack to how you flick it,' He informed her, slipping behind her and placing his hand on her wrist. 'like this,' he whispered to her. If she could have collapsed right there, she would have done, but his impossible grip was keeping her standing. His voice slipped like honey in her ear, and it sounded so sweet that she could practically taste sugar in her mouth. She tore her focus back to the matter in hand. Tom gently moved her wrist to flick her wand slightly to the right, before making a sharp movement upward and left. 'Got that?'

'Yeah, I think so,' Bella answered, not sure of how weak her voice sounded until now. She swallowed as Tom took a step away from her to observe.

'Really think about it, Bella,' He told her. She bit her lip to stop herself smiling because he said her name. 'really concentrate on what you're trying to do.'

She nodded, raised her wand again and thought about it hard. She flicked her wrist like Tom had showed her, and gave one last burst of concentration on becoming invisible. However, she had absolutely no idea if it had worked or not. She glanced at Tom for approval.

'Well done,' He said in vaguely her direction. 'so now, you need to think the opposite – about re-appearing, and flick your wand in exactly the same way.'

Bella didn't reply, she just did as she was told – focussed on being normal again, flicked her wand…

'Very good,' Tom grinned at her. She was a quick learner. With the right cultivation, she could be such a powerful weapon to have on his side.

'Thanks.' Bella beamed at him, so happy that she hadn't managed to embarrass herself by not being able to do it first time round. He'd be so pleased with her.

'I think we'll call it a day now,' Tom told her, and Bella felt her heart sink slightly as he said it. She didn't want to go back, she wanted to learn things. New things. She'd learned more in that hour she'd spent with Tom, than she had in a whole term of Charms class. She just couldn't wait for the next Hogsmeade visit – or until she figured out how to open James' map – so that she could learn something else.

'Oh,' Bella shrugged and dug her hands into the pockets of her jacket. 'okay. Well… thanks for teaching me. I enjoyed it.'

'No trouble at all,' Tom took a step closer to her, a warm glow in his eyes. 'it's only the beginning. Next time I can teach you something even better – if you like.'

'Yeah,' Bella said, almost too quickly. 'I'd like that. What will you teach me next time?' She pried.

Tom smirked. 'You'll just have to wait and see, won't you?' He ran one finger along the line of her jaw, and she instinctively wanted to follow it back to him. 'Come on then, I'll walk you back into Hogsmeade.'

He did just that, and in the most gentlemanly fashion he could ever have done it. Didn't change the fact that deep in the back of Bella's mind, she liked him so much that she wished he'd just kiss her. But she knew he wouldn't. He seemed only interested in her for her talent, and because they were old friends. She sighed inwardly as he left her at the entrance of the alley they'd met at.

She began to walk up to Hogwarts on her own. After a while, she decided to get the map out of her bag and have a go at figuring out how to open it. She unfolded it and stared at the blank pages. For a moment they were just aggravating, but after a moment, writing began to appear.

_Mr Prongs wondered when Bellatrix Black would come across this. Up to no good, Bella?_

She stared at it still, was this actually James talking to her? Or a personality that was already in the map? A piece of him, maybe.

_Mr Prongs would like to inform Bellatrix that she'll never open the map without admitting she's up to no good_.

Before Bella had the chance to even contemplate what that meant, she was rudely interrupted.

'Bellatrix Black?' A voice very close behind her said. She spun around, still clutching the map. The snivelling little face of Severus Snape stood behind her, his lanky frame still not quite overwhelming the greasiness of his hair.

'Yes?'

'What's that?' Snape avoided whatever it was he'd originally wanted and drew his attention straight to the map.

Bella shrugged. 'Just some parchment.' Snape snatched it from her hands, but she didn't really mind, after all, she couldn't get it to show the map, so all Snape was holding was a blank piece of parchment, as the previous text from 'Mr Prongs' had already vanished.

Snape's expression changed suddenly, from looking almost arrogant about having taken the map, to an expression resembling a potion having just exploded in his face. Bella peered over the map to see what it had done to make him look so offended.

_Mr. Moony presents his compliments to Severus Snape and begs him to keep his abnormally large nose out of other people's business.  
Mr. Prongs agrees with Mr. Moony and would like to add that Severus Snape is an ugly git.  
Mr. Padfoot would like to register his astonishment that an idiot like him ever came to possess this item.  
Mr. Wormtail bids Severus Snape good day, and advises him to wash his hair, the slime-ball._

Bella couldn't contain her laughter at this, as she snatched the map back off him and watched the ink disappear once more.

'Oh, Snape,' She muttered. 'there are just some people you will never be better than. And as a Slytherin, that's a big insult.' Bella told him, before striding away from him and back towards the castle, a smile still on her face from reading that. However, she still needed to work it out for herself, no matter how many quick witted words the map told her, it didn't matter if she couldn't work out how to get in it. That would be tonight's work.


	18. Provoking Prongs

Sitting in the dorms late that night, Bella got out the map again. She'd already lied to Lucy tonight, more than she'd care to admit. Inevitably Lucy wanted to know where it was that Bella had run off to in Hogsmeade, and she had to lie and tell her that Roddy wanted to talk, and that she wanted to put an end to it once and for all. She had to make up an entire conversation between them for Lucy when she asked about it. Bella just had to hope that she didn't go and talk to Roddy about it. That could get confusing. The truth about Roddy though, was that Bella had barely spoken to him since he walked her back to the common room. However, she put it out of her mind, and focussed her attention on the elusive map.

She unrolled the parchment, and once more it started to write to her.

_Mr Prongs sees that Bellatrix Black still hasn't worked out how to open this – even with all the hints he has given her. _

'What hints?' Bella hissed at it, careful not to wake anyone in her dorm.

_Mr Prongs would like to enquire, once again, if Bellatrix Black is up to no good, as usual?_

Bella smirked. 'Always.'

_Mr Prongs doesn't believe Bellatrix Black. If she wants to prove it, she'll have to say it._

'I _am_ up to no good.' Bella told it, suddenly feeling a bit of an idiot for talking to a map.

_Mr Prongs would like to enquire if Bellatrix Black means it? Would you swear you are up to no good?_

'I swear I am up to no good.' Bella was slowly starting to lose her patients with that map. What exactly was this Mr Prongs trying to prove?

_Mr Prongs would like to know how sincere you are, in swearing that?_

'Solemnly.'

_Mr Prongs would encourage you to say it out loud once more, everything we've talked about._

Bella glared at it. This was the last thing before she screwed the whole thing up and dropped it in the lake! But, she gave it one more chance. 'I solemnly swear I am up to no good.'

And then the writing disappeared. The dark red ink dissolved back into the paper, and more labels and writing began to appear. Bella stared and ran it through in her mind. _Messers; Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs are proud to present the Marauders' Map._ She watched intently as a detailed map of the school began to spread out across the parchment, and then those little black name-tags she'd seen before began to move around the map. She grinned. Why would James help her open the map? He expressed very clearly that he didn't want her to have it!

Her eyes subconsciously drew her to James Potter's nametag. However, he wasn't in the Gryffindor dorms like he should be. He, along with Sirius Black, Peter Pettigrew and Remus Lupin were on the Hogwarts grounds. It had been about a month since Bella had seen them in their animagus forms on the grounds, and since she'd seen Remus Lupin's little secret. She wasn't scared of it anymore – well, not as much anyway. The name-tags were starting to creep towards the edge of the grounds, they were just near the Whomping Willow, when they disappeared. With no warning whatsoever, they just vanished from the map. It was almost too curious not to investigate it for herself. She took a quick glance around the dorm, to check that everyone was still asleep. No one stirred, and they all looked perfectly peaceful. She carefully got out of bed, avoiding the floorboard that creaked by Lucy's bed, and threw on some shoes. Tucking the map under her arm, she swiftly left the dorm.

Once she was safely out of places people were likely to see her, she began to run. She had no idea where James and his friends had gone, so she'd need to be quick if she wanted to catch up to them.

The bitter cold outside hit her the second she slipped through the secret passage to get onto the grounds. She shivered but tried to ignore it. The passageway had brought her out straight in front of the Whomping Willow, but it just looked normal, it's branches swaying softly as it slept. There was no way James could have got past that, _no one_ got past the Whomping Willow. Students were heavily advised not to go near it. Although, Bella had heard that it had only been planted the year they all started at Hogwarts, and she had to wonder why. It was hardly a welcoming feature of the grounds if they were all told to leave it alone. So maybe it was doing the opposite, it was a deterrent. But to stop people going where? There was nothing behind it apart from one of the many ways to get into the Forbidden Forest, and if people were desperate enough to go there, there were about forty other options, besides fighting their way through a tree with attitude.

A sharp noise caught Bella's attention. It sounded like the kind of noise a horse might make. But the centaurs didn't come this far towards the Castle without a good reason, and unicorns stayed right within the heart of the forest. Something moved near the base of the tree, and Bella whipped around, her wand aiming into the darkness. It was a stag. She swallowed and lowered her wand, almost guilty to have threatened such a creature. It was beautiful, with its long, proud antlers and dark, shimmering eyes. It's nose twitched and made it look like it was smirking. Bella smiled, she couldn't help it. She stayed still, knowing that if she made a move, it might run off. She'd forgotten all about following James and his friends, this stag just seemed to make everything else disappear from her mind.

The stag stepped closer, but it didn't look nervous like they usually did. It looked almost like it was teasing her, rather than trembling. Bella watched it curiously, as it took a couple more steps closer to her, until it was right in front of her. Its huge eyes stared up at her, and she felt almost as if she knew it… That was absurd, no way could someone _know_ a stag. It was a ludicrous notion. All of a sudden, a thought dawned on her. Moony; the full moon, Remus Lupin was a werewolf. Padfoot, Sirius' apparent animagus form was a big, black dog. Prongs? A stag. James.

'_James_?' Bella hissed, feeling like an idiot for actually talking to a stag. It winked at her. No, it didn't. A stag wouldn't wink. But it really looked like it did… It definitely smiled. Absolutely smiled. No doubt about it. Bella raised her eyebrows. 'James, just transform back. It's not funny.'

Within in seconds, the stag had stood on its back legs, and become human, and James Potter was grinning back at her.

'Alright?' He asked, shoving his hands into his pockets.

'No! I'm not _alright_!' Bella answered angrily. She wanted to shout and scream, but she knew someone would hear and she'd get into trouble. Although, it was tempting to get James into trouble as well…

'Oh,' James pouted. 'shame.'

'Stop it,' Bella growled. 'just stop it! Can't you just leave me alone?'

He smirked almost menacingly. 'I think you'll find,' he took a step closer. 'that it's _you_ who can't leave _me_ alone.'

Bella folded her arms and glared at him. 'You don't deserve Lily.' She said finally. James gave her a confused look.

'What?'

'You don't deserve her,' Bella repeated quietly. 'she's full of soul and heart and kindness. And you? You're a player, James. You'll get what you want from her and move along.'

James smirked again, and cast a look at Bella that made her almost shiver. It was a cold, chilling look in his eyes that just said she was wrong.

'I don't think so, Bellatrix,' James breathed. 'I like Lily. She's the kind of girl I could take home to my parents. But she's also feisty and frankly, quite hot.'

Bella drew her wand, it was just a reflex. 'You're a liar, and a cheater, and a heartless bastard.' Bella spat.

James clutched his heart and pretended to look hurt, then broke back into his comfortable grin. 'Ouch.' He smirked.

'It's true,' Bella continued. 'and you should also note that Lily has secret little meetings with Snape in the middle of the night. Very sordid business. Bet you didn't know that, did you, Potter?'

The colour drained from James' face as he heard this. He swallowed hard. 'You lie.'

'Yeah,' Bella shrugged. 'but not right now.'

James' composure broke for a tiny fraction of a second, then he brought his guard back up again. 'Just go, Bella. Don't get involved in things that don't concern you.' He spun around, wide-eyed, as a wolf cry echoed through the trees. Bella felt like she'd been rooted to the spot, pulled down by roots of the shrubbery.

'_Go_,' James urged her, giving her a gentle push in the direction of the castle. 'go on!' She knew he meant it for her safety, and that wolf call seemed very close. She did as she was told and sprinted back up the castle, and away from the Whomping Willow. She took the route she'd come through and arrived back in the castle. Unnoticed, she snuck back into her dorm, and eventually went to sleep.

She slept in the next day, and to start with she panicked that she was late, then realised that she'd only missed Charms class. And that didn't even count as a proper class. She'd got a Transfiguration lesson she ought to get to, though, as the new teacher would most certainly love to take some points off Slytherin for her tardiness. She quickly got up, ran her wand over her hair to tame it, and got dressed, before setting off from the dorms at a quick pace.

There were still a few people entering the Transfiguration classroom when she got there, so she simply tagged onto the end of the line and acted as if she'd been there the whole time, slipping into her seat by Lucy.

'Where've you been?' Lucy asked her curiously.

'Sleeping,' Bella replied honestly. '_someone_ let me over-sleep.'

'Sorry,' Lucy smiled back. 'I was late myself, and I figured you'd get up eventually.'

'Well, yes,' Bella answered sarcastically. 'otherwise you'd be burying me right now.'

'Charming.' Lucy replied, rolling her eyes.

'Ten points from Slytherin.' And their conversation was interrupted. Both girls turned to glare at the Transfiguration professor. McGonagall was a thin witch, with auburn hair tightly scraped back into a bun. Bella didn't break her stare.

'Could you tell me what the answer to the question I just asked?' Professor McGonagall asked her wryly, folding her arms neatly.

Bella had actually been subconsciously paying attention, and it was a skill she'd picked up specifically for moments like this. 'One.' Bella replied confidently. McGonagall's expression stiffened.

'Very good,' She said slowly. 'and what was the question?'

'What has every guy in our year given Bella?' James Potter spoke up from the back of the room, and sparked a few giggles and gasps from the room. Bella allowed him a stony smile.

'And would that include you?' Bella retorted casually. There was a collective 'oooooh' from the rest of the students at her comeback.

James flushed a little, but picked it back up. 'Not a chance. Would I really stoop that low?' He grinned at Sirius next to him, who was in absolute stitches. Lily Evans, however, was distractedly messing with her quill on the desk.

'I certainly wouldn't.' Bella answered quickly. 'Sirius, on the other hand, looks a little guilty of _stooping low_… care to share, Potter?'

Sirius stopped laughing pretty quickly and gave his cousin a harsh glare. Bella simply smiled back.

'I think that's quite enough-' Professor McGonagall tried to interrupt them, and failed miserably as Sirius got up from his seat.

'Oh, don't start,' Bella moaned. 'you never win.'

'Is that so?' Sirius growled, moving closer to her, his hand hovering over his wand pocket.

The new professor didn't really seem sure how to handle this situation, and simply stood watching. Was she allowed to disarm a student?

'I think we should all just sit down-'

'Come on then!' Bella piped up, springing from her seat. 'Don't be all talk, now.' And she raised her wand, as Sirius did the same.

'Do this on your own time, please-'

Bella cast a non-verbal switching spell on Sirius's wand, and it instantly became a sugar wand. He threw it on the floor in a rage.

'You heard the professor,' Bella told him spitefully. 'take this up on our own time.' And with that she gracefully sat back down again and flashed a completely false, yet very convincing, kind smile at Professor McGonagall. She smiled back nervously.

'Thank you, Miss Black.' She replied quietly, then continued the lesson. Bella was pleased with herself that she'd managed to annoy James and Sirius in one lesson, it was a personal best, as well as confuse the hell out of a new teacher. Marvellous. She could only sit back and wait now, until she could contact Tom Riddle, and tell him she could come and meet him whenever he wanted her to, now that she could get into the map.

That evening, Bella was reminded of something she'd long forgotten as she entered her dorm with Lucy. Abby was sitting on her bed, discussing dresses with Izzie and Kathryn. Dresses for the formal Christmas dance. Bella groaned.

'God, you're not actually going, are you?' Bella asked them, flopping down onto her own bed.

'Obviously,' Abby replied. 'it's going to be great!'

Bella rolled her eyes. 'Yeah, because you have a date.' Abby simply shrugged and dismissed her comment, as there was no doubt she'd be going with Matt.

Bella let them carry on their pointless little conversation. Sure, she'd go to this event, but only because they were going. She was reminded of her dress, the black one James had helped her pick out, and told her that he liked so much. She'd have to wear it. It was the only formal dress she'd brought with her. She sighed inwardly. Oh well, if she had to wear that one, she might as well wear it with style and spite. The best way to wear a dress.


	19. Saviour

Bella's black dress still looked stunning as she walked with Lucy down to the Great Hall. She shocked herself at the fact she was actually nervous. She could feel the imaginary butterflies in her stomach. And it was almost purely because she knew James would be watching her.

Lucy looked fantastic in her little navy dress, and it complimented her lightly tanned skin perfectly. She met up with Alex outside the Great Hall, and gave Bella a sympathetic smile as she linked his arm. Bella didn't have a date for this event – she didn't want one. Abby had already wandered down earlier with Matt, and probably wouldn't be seen again until tomorrow morning.

She didn't need to be told that she was required to go her own way now, as she simply stepped past them and strolled by herself into the Great Hall. It was just as she'd feared it would be. All the house tables had gone, and been replaced with many sets of round tables with chairs around them, with white table clothes and a lavish floral display adorning each of them. A space was cleared in the centre, in front of the staff table, which was evidently a dance floor. Bella swallowed. If there was one thing she hated more than organised fun, such as this - it was dancing. She had a natural rhythm, but not the sort that allowed her to be able to dance without feeling like a fool. She could rhythmically fire off spells at people for maximum effect, but place her in the arms of a man on a dance floor with some classical music, and she was like a frightened horse on a frozen lake.

Her eyes scanned the room for a point of interest, and she found the bar. Excellent. It wasn't as if it was a proper bar, but she could at least sit there and not have to worry about making conversation with people she hated the sight of.

Serving at the bar was none other than Chesney Larkin, the Ravenclaw Seeker and Captain. He grinned at Bella, knowing there was a bit of friendly rivalry between them. He pushed a glass in her direction. She looked up at him, taking the glass, but not drinking from it.

'Because I know you can't enjoy yourself without it.' He winked at her like he was mocking her. She glared playfully at him before taking a sip, before she realised it wasn't a drink you could sip. She downed it almost skilfully and thrust it back at him. He stored it somewhere under the bar.

'Alone?' He asked, trying to casually eye her up.

'Yes,' She said strongly. 'and I intend on it staying that way.'

Chesney shrugged. 'Fine by me.'

'You here all night?' Bella asked him, a little shocked that they'd stop him from enjoying the party by keeping him at the bar all evening.

'No,' He replied. 'but I don't mind staying longer than I have to. I don't have a date, and I can't dance to save my life.'

'Lucky for you you'll never have to dance someone to death.' Bella joked. Chesney grinned in agreement. He was about to say something else to her, when the music began and it seemed apparent that the dancing was going to start imminently. She watched as couples in expensive dresses and sharp suits took to the floor. She noticed James and Lily were amongst them, but Lily didn't look pleased about it. Her long red hair was gently curled down her back, but she was giving James a hard stare as he tried to be as romantic as he could while leading her around the floor. She was having none of it. In fact, as soon as the soft music had finished playing, she stormed away from him and into the trophy room. Bella wondered what she could be doing in there, but she wasn't curious enough to follow her and find out. Instead, her attentions were focused on James, as he was evidently making a beeline for her. She aimed an evil smile in his direction.

'Black,' He addressed her angrily. 'what did you say to her?'

Bella gave him a quizzical look. 'What?'

'Lily. What did you say to her?' He repeated.

'I still don't know what you mean,' Bella answered heatedly, not liking his tone one bit. 'I didn't say anything to her.'

'Don't lie,' James shot back, his eyes almost piercing. 'she keeps mentioning you. Keeps saying I'm looking at you. She says I want you, not her.'

Bella sat stunned staring at him. She really said those things? Did that make them true? Even just a little bit?

'Then tell her she's wrong.'

'I _have_.' James said, through gritted teeth.

'Evidently not convincingly enough.'

'Apparently.' James sighed. He slouched down into the seat next to her, all that anger seemed to be just a façade. He was clearly feeling more defeated than anything else.

'Maybe…' he started to say, but cut himself short.

'Maybe, what?' Bella pried, too curious to let it go. He observed her for a moment. That dress… it was the one he picked out. He adored it on her, it just made everything about her stand out. She was perfect anyway, but it just made her seem even more so; slim, but not skinny; curvy, but not too much… perfect. And her hair, falling all round her face, those tight curls just escaping all around her. Untameable. 'James?'

'Ah? What?' He shook his head. 'Sorry?'

Bella smirked at him. 'I said, _maybe, what_?'

'Oh,' James appeared to blush a little, but it must have been a trick of the light. 'just thinking, maybe what Lily's saying…' He stopped again, having an internal argument with himself. 'Nothing.' He concluded.

Bella sat for a moment, saying nothing. What did he mean? What Lily's saying was what? She tried to push it out of her mind. After all, whatever he was going to say was irrelevant. Why did it matter? It didn't. Or at least that's what she told herself. Soon she'd go back and see Tom Riddle, maybe over the Christmas holidays, and that would be nice. He'd teach her something else, they'd have a chat… he'd give her that _look_ again. It would be lovely.

'Bella,' Someone else interrupted her internal musings – and it wasn't James. It was Roddy. 'can we talk?'

She sighed and gave James an almost apologetic look, but it was more sarcastic than anything else. He smirked at her and let her leave without another word, as she followed Roddy outside.

'It's cold.' She commented without thinking, as the chilly winter air whipped around her bare arms.

'Want my jacket?' Roddy offered. She shook her head, as he knew she would. There was no helping her.

'So,' She started, looking him in the eyes. 'what's up?'

'I guess I just wanted to remind you of something,' He said quietly, trying to pluck up the courage to meet her sharp gaze. Eventually he forced himself to do so, and stare into her impossibly dark eyes. He swallowed hard.

'Remind me what?'

'Remind you that I still feel the way I did before.'

Bella remained silent. She didn't want reminding of this. She'd hoped he could move on. She wanted him to move on _so_ badly. When she didn't answer, Roddy took it as another opportunity to speak.

'I know it might be stupid to say this – it's probably too soon,' He paused and glanced around them before continuing. 'I still love you, Bellatrix.' She still didn't reply. She was too shocked. She wanted desperately to turn and literally run back into the Great Hall, but she couldn't even if she wanted to, her feet had rooted to the spot. Roddy misinterpreted this silence as compliance, and leant towards her to try and kiss her. In reflex, the first thing Bella could think to do was slap him. And she did.

He stepped back, his hand clutched to his cheek, glaring at her. She maintained the hard stare she was so skilled at.

'Don't.' She told him. 'Just don't.'

He snapped his hand away from his face. 'You'll always be mine, Bellatrix. Don't try to deny it.' His tone scared her, sent a shiver down her spine.

She drew her wand, which she'd been keeping discretely down the front of her dress. He didn't seem fazed by this, as he was overcome by his emotions and anger. He should have thought better of it. As he made another advance at her, Bella fired a spell at him, and she wasn't even sure what it was. A powerful wind flew around him, breaking branches off the nearby trees. It wasn't like the last times she let her emotions take over, this was different. This wasn't anger, this was passion. The passion of feeling let down, of being misled, of being hurt, and of being betrayed. It was everything she associated with Roddy.

He staggered backwards as she whirlwind died down, his hair flustered all around him, and rips now showing themselves in his suit.

'You little bitch!' He shouted back at her, rage emitting from him like a glow. Bella took a few involuntary steps backwards. She admitted she was scared now. She'd never been able to do that before, but she was willing to admit it now. She'd scream it from the rooftops if it meant she could get out of that situation. It wasn't because she was in fear of violence, because she knew she could handle that, it was fear something else. Roddy wasn't threatening her violently, she'd have known that. It was the lust and hunger in his eyes that frightened her to her very core. She was terrified of him right then – in fear of being hurt in a whole other way. Against someone like him, so well built and tall, she'd have no chance of ever being able to push him off her. Her head couldn't try to hide it from her anymore, and it burst through the centres of the mind like an overflowing reservoir. She was scared of being raped.

A sharp ring echoed through the silence for a second, only a second, and Roddy fell forwards, Bella skidding backwards to avoid his body crushing her as he hit the floor like a boulder. She looked up through the tears she hadn't realised she had, and saw the concerned face of James Potter. She didn't have time to even think, she ran at him, letting him embrace her if only to feel safe. His arms wrapped around her and she felt warmth spread through her.

'He didn't touch you, did he?' James whispered to her. Bella shook her head, though it was still buried in his shoulder. She felt him relax slightly. 'Good.' He stroked her hair caringly.

'Thank you,' She told him quietly, her hands winding around his neck.

'Would never have hesitated to do it again.' James told her softly. Bella nuzzled back into the niche between his neck and shoulder. It felt like home to be back in his arms.

'D'you know what I was going to say to you before? In the Hall?' He asked her, although Bella knew it didn't require an answer. Before he got the chance to answer, there was shout from nearby.

'James? What the hell are you doing?' It was Sirius. He was angry. He knew. Bella looked up at James, pulling back a little, but only to be able to look him in the eyes.

He didn't even look back at his friend. He didn't care if he heard.

'Maybe what Lily says is true.'

And he turned away to Sirius, pushing Bella gently back towards the doors. The last thing she heard was Sirius shouting obscenities at his best friend. He didn't deserve it. Bella leaned against the wall of the Great Hall, oblivious to what was going on around her, the music just washing over her.

Lily _was_ right. And Bella wanted James just as much as he wanted her.


	20. Take A Chance

**A/N: sorry it's taken so long guys! Really sorry, but I've had exams and that:( the good thing is- I finish the last of them next week, so I can spend loadsa time writing, and I intend to XD. Just a warning for this chapter, the F-bomb's dropped a few times (ooo badass). Review? xoxo**

Waiting was the hardest part. Bella sat by herself at the bar again, waiting for James to return. He might not return, and she knew that, but she wanted to stay there on the off chance. He didn't deserve the abuse Sirius was giving him, but when she thought about it the other way – if she'd caught someone like Lucy in a close embrace with Sirius – she'd be fuming as well.

'Hey, Bells,' Chesney was sparking a conversation back up again as he noticed her re-appearance. 'what's with you and Potter?'

Bella spun around on the bar stool to face him, as he cleaned a glass with a spell. 'I don't see a free drink in front of me.' She said animatedly, gesturing to empty space on the bar. Chesney grinned at her and shook his head, but in a few moment, a glass of wine appeared on the counter.

'Better.' Bella muttered to herself as she took a sip.

'So,' Chesney continued, leaning over the counter, but not too close. 'what's going on with you two?'

'Why? You jealous?'

'As if.' He said with a smirk. 'Besides, no one would dare set eyes on you – Roddy would have my head on a plate if I did.'

Bella set the glass down a little too loudly, as a couple of people turned around. She waited for them to carry on with their lives before she continued with her conversation. 'What's he been saying?' Even the thought of him filled her with anger, especially with what he just tried to do to her!

'The usual,' Chesney said casually. 'threatening to curse anyone if they look at you wrong, or stare at your arse when you walk past. No one knows what would happen if they went further, because no one has.' He sighed almost dramatically, then leaned a touch closer. 'Or have they?'

Bella met his gaze, that impossibly knowing gaze. How could he possibly know? Only Bella, Lucy, James, Lily… and now Sirius knew.

'I don't know what you're talking about.' She replied in a whisper.

'That's all I need to hear.' Chesney answered quickly, then took a step back. 'As long as you're happy, Bells.'

'Do I look happy to you, Larkin?' Bella snapped back, draining the remaining contents of her glass.

'You never look happy.'

Bella shoved the glass back across the counter at him. 'Get one for yourself, Chesney.' And with that, she stood up and left. It didn't stop him watching her as she did so, but he still kept one eye out for Roddy, just in case.

She left the Great Hall without question from anyone, but then again, who would question her? Lucy was off with Alex, probably trying to compete with Bella and go as far as she did with James… and James himself? Who knows where he was. Probably getting beaten up by Sirius. Bella knew she should have waited for him, after what he did for her, but she couldn't face it. And besides, would he really want everyone to see him with her? Before she knew it, tears were streaming down her face. She couldn't seem to get out of sight fast enough, she just wanted to hide herself away and cry. But she was stronger than that, or at least she wanted to convince herself she was.

Once she reached the dungeons, she stopped herself pacing, and leaned against the wall to calm down. It was cold and comforting on her back, exposed by her dress. She took a deep breath and tried to compose herself, but something caught her eye before she could do so. Movement, partway down the darkened corridor. She tried to adjust her eyes to the darkness, but it was already too late. She cast a quick glance at the staircase to check no one else was around, before she took off her heels, and took off after the movement. She didn't want to make any noise, because whatever it was – most like whoever – had left because they saw her, and alerting them of her presence would only make them run faster. Not that she couldn't keep up, just she couldn't be bothered with something like that right then.

She ducked behind a statue a little further down the corridor, as a candelabra illuminated the person she'd been tailing. It was Evan Rosier; he was back. He was in his uniform as well, which was even stranger. Bella would know if he'd come back to school, Lucy would have told her. He was talking to someone, the statue was just covering them up, even as she strained to try and make them out.

'He wants you to join,' Evan was saying quietly. 'he asked for you specifically.'

'Why? I don't understand.' The other guy said, though maintaining a tone of calmness, especially in comparison to the nervousness of Evan's voice. He used to be so composed, and he'd become this nervous wreck, quivering even at his own school. Former school.

'Because he knows you're talented! Why else?'

'Because he likes a certain sixth year, and knows he can marry her off to my brother?' The other guy retorts back sarcastically, but still with that tranquil tone.

'Are you fucking stoned?' Evan hissed at him. 'This is serious!'

There was a shuffling sound, as Bella could only see the other guys hands grab Evan's collar tightly, and growl at him, 'I know it's serious. And that's why I'm not interested. So don't get your wand in knot, Rosier, unless you plan on using it.' And then he dropped Evan like he was hot coal.

What were they talking about? It didn't make sense. What did Evan mean by 'want'? And why would _he_ want this other guy because of a sixth year girl, and his brother… his brother. Bella's eyes widened a little as her brain finally made the connection. Why hadn't she recognised his voice? It was Rabastan Lestrange that Evan was talking to, and _he_ must have been Tom Riddle, because he'd told Bella himself that he was recruiting people. He wanted to recruit Rabastan. But that meant, that the sixth year girl Tom liked, was her. It was Bella. She smiled a little at that, but it soon faded, at the thought of Tom trying to marry her off to Roddy. She'd sooner kill herself than do that.

'But what am I supposed to tell him now? He'll go mad if I tell him I failed!' Evan started begging, taking a huge gulp of air afterwards, like suddenly he was finding it hard to breath.

'Tell him I'm not interested.' Rabastan told him confidently. 'If he really wants me in his little cult, he'll make a better offer. I'm not going to sign up to this for free. Why would I invest in something I know nothing about? Only a fool would do that.'

'Always bringing money into it, aren't you?' Evan snarled back. 'I should have told him your dad worked in money, he could have bribed him.'

'Don't start, Rosier. Not if you know what's good for you.' Rabastan said with a bored sigh. Bella had always liked him better than his brother, he had such a low tolerance of idiots, and yet, never lost his temper with them, which seemed to make him superior to a lot of people. 'Go and tell him that I say he needs to make me and offer I can't refuse, alright?'

'An offer you can't refuse?' Evan repeated quickly.

'Yes. Would you like that in writing?'

'No.' Evan replied stonily, glaring back at him. And without another word, Evan turned to go down to corridor, and back up to the main part of the school. Where on earth was he going? Bella was about to follow him, when something stopped her.

'Evening, Bellatrix.' Rabastan said coolly, not moving from his spot, but turning to look at the statue she was hiding behind. She took a few moment, then slowly stepped out from behind it. 'What are you doing behind a statue, might I ask?'

Bella shrugged casually. 'Nothing much.'

Rabastan broke a smile at her, and she managed one back. 'Are you okay?' He asked her, suddenly sounding concerned as he stepped closer. 'You've got mascara-'

'I know.' She cut him off, maybe a little too fiercely. 'Ask your brother why.'

Rabastan sighed and rolled his eyes in annoyance. 'What's he done now?'

'Cornered me outside, he was going to fucking rape me.' Bella bit back, angry at his nonchalance at his brother's misdemeanours.

'Shit.' He muttered, and ran his hand through his hair. 'Bells, I'm sure he-'

'He meant to. I know he did.' She interrupted again. Rabastan didn't even try and reply this time, he put his arm around her and let her hug him for a while. He knew she didn't really want to talk, she was never in a good mood at the best of times, let alone when she was upset.

'Bells,' he started, as she gently lifted her head off his shoulder to look at him. 'how much of that conversation did you hear?'

'A fair bit.' She replied quietly.

Rabastan nodded slowly, like he'd been expecting that. 'Thought so. And you understand what's going on?'

'I think so.'

'Then say no.' He told her forcefully. 'Get out now, while you don't have an obligation, okay? I can tell this is not going to end well.'

'He said it was a organisation…' Bella tried pointlessly to defend Tom, but it was obvious it was only due to her personal attraction to him. 'He said it was a common interest…'

'To eradicate Muggles,' he continued where she'd left off. 'and mudbloods. And yes, I don't like them, but I would never want them killed. That's what he's planning to do, Bella. He wants to world to be entirely wizards, and pure-bloods at that. Can you imagine how small this school would be if it was only pure-bloods?'

'It would grow after a while,' Bella answered automatically. 'once our generation had grown up and had kids.'

'Don't.' He told her sternly. 'Stop. You cannot defend him. If you continue with this, you'll end up getting yourself killed.'

'Tom wouldn't let that happen…'

'Wouldn't he?' Rabastan questioned her. 'I could take out my wand right now and kill you on the spot. And where would he be? Not here, that's for sure. And you'd be spending the rest of your life with Moaning Myrtle.'

The thought petrified her. That was not what she wanted, to be left haunting the corridors of a school she used to love.

'He'll seize the school once he can, Bells.' He told her, almost like he'd seen her thoughts. 'Think about how lovely it is now, and how much it could change. It will never be the same once he's left his tainted mark on it, Bella. You know he's bad news.'

'I've always liked the bad guys.' Bella said with a sigh.

'Change your mind. Just once.' Rabastan told her, grabbing her shoulders and forcing her to look him in the eyes again. 'It might just save your life.'

She watched him for a while. His dark eyes were filled with upmost sincerity, and she knew he meant every word. And as much as she hated the thought of what he was saying about the school, the one thing that lingered in her mind, was being married to his brother. And that notion sent chills down her spine, and a spike through her heart.

'Gonna take a chance, Bells?' He asked her finally.

'I don't know.' She answered in a whisper, as she was still locked into his eyes, trying to find a part of him that was lying.

'Something to think about, then,' he said quietly, and did the most unexpected thing, completely throwing Bella off any other thoughts she was having. He kissed her. Let his lips glide over hers with more emotion than she ever thought possible. He was begging her not to join up. Before she could even react after getting over the shock, he pulled away from her.

'Good night, Bellatrix.' He said in the same tone he'd greeted her, and walked back down the corridor, casual, as always. Bella watched him go, with a strange feeling of longing nagging at her in her mind. That kiss was something else entirely, and that thing that made her want more, was that she was sure it wasn't because he was attracted to her. Which made him even more appealing. And, he was Roddy's brother. So off limits he should have been glowing red with warning, but that just made him so much more tempting. The anger it would cause Roddy to see her with his brother was too tantalising to dispel the notion, no matter how bad it was to think of it.


	21. Hitting Home

**A/N: Sorry it's taken so long! I've been on holiday for ages, and then other things came up, and it's been really difficult to keep on top of things! But anyway, hope you like it – now I've finally done it ;) review? xoxo**

Bella waited in the common room, partly in the hope that Rabastan would come back, and maybe she'd have some kind of an idea about how they were meant to act around each other now, and partly because she couldn't face going back into the Great Hall. The common room was literally empty. Bella was the only person there, and it felt colder than ever. The common room has always been such a warm place for Bella, because it was the symbol of everything that mattered to her. It was the Slytherin common room for a start, and house pride meant so much to her, but besides that, all her friends were there (besides Barty Crouch), the portraits in the common room were only of purebloods, and both her sisters would be around at some point. House pride, friends, family and being pureblood. Everything that mattered.

'Bella?'

Even the sound of his voice made her jump up with her wand out before she even set eyes on him. Roddy was back, looking considerably dazed, with his tie loose and lopsided, and his shirt half un-tucked. There were grass stains on his suit jacket, evidently from when he fell after James hexed him.

'Get away from me.' She growled at him, backing away from him even though he was nowhere near her. His expression was nothing short of complete confusion.

'What?' He asked finally, after realising she really wasn't joking.

'Don't come near me.' She told him, her voice raising without even thinking. 'I don't want you anywhere near me.'

'What… what did I do?' He questioned, although, Bella was starting to believe his act. He might actually have been confused. Did he get a concussion when he fell?

'You don't remember?' Bella said, quieter this time, though her wand was still raised.

He shook his head. 'I thought I blacked out. Reckon I had too much to drink.'

Bella observed him for a while, just to be sure he wasn't bluffing. It didn't seem like it, but even if he'd forgotten what he tried to do, it didn't excuse him of it.

'I'm leaving.' Bella said, without any other explanation, and she stalked past him and swept through the portrait hole. He stared after her, wondering what the hell he could have done to make her so angry with him. But he didn't follow her. He knew that she was too wound up to ever listen, and one of them would probably end up getting hurt.

Bella made her way to the owlery. She didn't have any reason to go there, apart from needing to go somewhere quiet and secluded. And that seemed perfect. It's not as if the owls were going to ask her why she wasn't at the party. Maybe she'd send an owl back home, just for a chat.

When she got there the old wooden door was ajar. She sighed, as it seemed like she was not destined to be alone tonight. Wherever she went, it just seemed like other people would follow. She hoped they were just first years writing home about their first few months, or asking for sweets or something.

She couldn't see anyone when she entered, and she smiled when she thought that maybe the door was just left open from whoever was there before her, and had now left. She sat down on the wooden bench by the school owls and stared out of the window.

'A little over dressed for writing home, aren't you?'

Bella knew the voice and couldn't help smiling even before she turned around. Barty Crouch was leaning against the stone wall, his bow tie untied around his collar, and that familiar smirk on his face.

'Only a little.' Bella smiled, as he sat down in front of her.

'Not enjoying the party, then?' He asked conversationally, casually giving the tawny owl beside him a pat on the head. It's head spun around to bite him, but he had already retracted his hand.

'Not really, no.' Bella answered honestly, but she wasn't in the mood to give him all the gory details. She didn't want to talk about them just yet. Maybe even ever.

'I saw what happened, you know.'

Bella stared at him, unable to stop her dark eyes widening. 'How?'

Barty shrugged. 'I was outside.' Bella didn't reply for a moment, she was just watching him and thinking, until one factor came into her head.

'Why didn't you help? Why didn't you do anything?' She questioned harshly, her eyes narrowing at her friend. He didn't respond straight away, he just looked at the floor.

'I couldn't, could I? Because a certain Potter sprang to the rescue.'

Bella bit her lip and ran her hands though her hair. Of course, she'd forgotten about that. It wasn't that he didn't want to help, but he'd seen James.

'It's okay, you know, Bella,' he continued calmly, placing his hand on her shoulder comfortingly. 'I'm not going to say anything. You know I'm not.' Bella just nodded, she couldn't do anything else.

'It's not serious,' she managed to say quietly. 'I promise it's not. It was. But not now.'

'Why are you telling me this?' Barty grinned at her, and she choked out a laugh. He patted her on the back and leant away from her again, and prodded the owl, once more avoiding its beak.

'I want to go home.' Bella sighed, speaking her mind. Barty just nodded and watched her. He knew something was up, but he knew it had been for a while. He could just tell. 'Ever since Evan and AJ left, everything's gone bad. Absolutely everything.' And then Tom Riddle popped back into her head. 'Mostly.'

Barty stared at her. 'Mostly.' He said in agreement, but he said it cautiously. He was trying to coax more information out of her. Bella met his gaze. She knew her best friend, and she understood instantly that he knew she was withholding things.

'Tom Riddle was back here, you know,' she said, forcing her tone to be casual.

'I think I know where this is going…'

'And he asked me to-'

'Bella, don't.' He interrupted her before she'd even had a chance to finish. 'Don't do it. I know part of what he's planning, he told me some things while I was working with him in the holidays. He's not a nice person. He stole from a client, Bella. He stole something very valuable, and the next week the client was found dead in her home. Is that a coincidence?' He told her seriously, his eyes shining with worry. Bella swallowed hard. Maybe it was just a coincidence?

'I don't… I don't know.'

'Tell me you didn't agree.'

'I…'

'_Tell me_.'

'I can't.'

Barty got up instantly and kicked the wooden bench he'd been sitting on. The leg of the bench splintered and caved in on itself, the bench drooping to a slanted position. 'God, Bella! I _told_ you on the train!'

'I know you did,' Bella tried her best to keep her voice calm and try and reason with him. 'but he's just… and I was in a really bad place…'

'Don't even try!' He held his hand up to her and she stopped speaking instantly. She didn't like this side to Barty. He'd only ever shown his temper when he was trying to protect someone, and she did not like being on the receiving end.

'I'm sorry…'

'Shut-up, Bella.' He snapped. 'I don't want to hear it. Besides, why do I need an apology from you? For not listening to me? Hardly. You ought to be apologising to yourself, you're the only one you've let down here.' He took a deep breath and looked back at her slowly.

'Do you know why I told you to stay clear of him? Why I told you what a bad person he is?' He asked her, a sudden and unexpected calm in his voice.

'No…'

'Because he got to me first. I was working to keep a roof under my head. He promised me that if I joined him, he'd let me stay with him for free, and give me food off his own plate. That sounded like an offer made in Heaven. But trust me, it's not. Sure, he'll train you and teach you all these amazing spells and curses, and they seem cool because they're dangerous. But after that, it starts getting weird. He'll ask you to meet him in dark pubs in the middle of nowhere, where everyone's wearing hooded cloaks and speaks in hushed tones. Or he'll meet you on the street, and there's a drop of blood on his shoes, but he's got that look that says you shouldn't ask.' His eyes clouded over and turned dark as he explained. Bella couldn't believe what he was saying, and surely Tom wouldn't do that… she really liked him – why would he do that? 'He's been writing to me, Bella. Telling me that a place in his group is being made for me, that I can leave school soon. I don't _want_ to leave school. I don't have a home, and Hogwarts gave me one. I shouldn't abandon that for someone who has every intention of burning it to the ground.'

'He wouldn't-'

'_Yes, _he would. He's powerful beyond his age, by a long shot. I'm sure Dumbledore didn't realise that when he turned down his application for the Defence Against the Dark Arts post. I'm sure he would have phrased things a little differently had he have known.'

'Phrased things differently? How do you… He told you, didn't he? He wrote to you.' Bella finally understood it. He was telling the truth, every word of it. That had just proved it. What had she got herself into? But it didn't change the fact that she still liked Tom. She _really_ liked him. And maybe there wasn't a way to get out of this now… Maybe she'd just have to stay. She could just stay with Tom, and then maybe he'd realise he liked her so much that he had to stop all his business and just be with her. Hopefully.

'Bella,' Barty got down on the floor in front of her and took her hands in his, then met her gaze. 'promise me you won't do anything stupid – you won't go _looking_ for Tom.'

'Why would I go looking for someone who wants to do that?'

Meanwhile, in the basement of and abandoned shop in Knockturn Alley, Tom Riddle sat at his desk, just staring at the ceiling. The door opened with a creek, and he spun around instantly. Evan Rosier gave him a nervous smile and crept into the room, anxiety almost radiating off him.

'Well?' Tom probed, when Evan said nothing.

'He, um, he said you need to make him an offer he can't refuse.' Evan repeated quickly, almost as if he could lessen its meaning. Tom remained motionless for a moment, as Evan's nervous smile dropped and his eyes turned scared. Eventually, Tom laughed. But it was cold.

'An offer he can't refuse.' He repeated, like it was the punch line of a good joke. 'We'll see about that.'

'Although I did see someth-'

'I know.' Tom cut in. 'I know what you saw.' He'd obviously been rummaging through Evan's thoughts while he had the chance. Occlumency was something he'd learned at a very young age, and it had given him a vast advantage so far. 'I think I know where to start with that offer.'


	22. The Boathouse

_A/N: I am so sorry this has taken me so long, I hope you're not mad/lost interest in this. I wanted to make sure it was good and for some reason I found it really difficult to do that. Thanks for reading this! xoxo_

Christmas was coming around fast, and Bella needed to make plans. Everyone already knew what they were doing for the Christmas holidays, but Bella was wondering what she was supposed to do. Even after everything Barty had told her about Tom Riddle, she was still thinking about when she would next be meeting with him. She was on her way to her last class of the day, Transfiguration, when she overheard some raised voices in the corridor next to the Transfiguration courtyard. She stopped and listened, not yet having a look, because she was certain she already knew who the voices belonged to.

'Why should I apologise?' James Potter was yelling at someone. Bella had evidently caught them mid conversation, but she knew instantly who he was talking to.

'Because it's the right thing to do!' Lily answered in a raised voice, but definitely not as loudly as James. 'You did something terrible to her, and you need to rectify it!'

'I don't understand why it's such a big deal to you,' James grumbled. 'she's a real bitch, Lily. You know she hates Muggle-borns, don't you?' Bella inwardly felt a little guilty, because he was right, but she did not hate Lily Evans.

Lily took a deep breath. 'James, I don't care. Even if she was the symbol of evil itself, you still need to apologise.' Bella couldn't help but smile at hearing that, Lily was such a nice person, especially in comparison to James Potter. After what he'd said to her at the Christmas party about Lily being right that he wanted her! It was all lies but to what end? What did he actually hope to achieve?

James sighed heavily. 'Okay. Fine. I'll apologise, but don't expect miracles, Lily. I'm not going to be her best friend, you understand that, don't you?'

'I'm not stupid.' Lily bit back, then she stormed away from James without another word. Bella smirked at her attitude and could feel nothing but pride for Lily's actions.

She decided to back track her steps and go the long way around the courtyard so James didn't see her. She wasn't going to make this apology easy for him. If he really wanted to do what Lily asked, then he'd have to come and find her himself.

Transfiguration passed by tediously slowly and Bella took in virtually nothing from the lesson. They were set homework for the Christmas holidays and sent on their way.

'Are you okay, Bella?' Lucy asked her as they wandered back to the common room.

Bella shrugged. 'Yeah, why?'

'You just seem distant.' Lucy observed, throwing her auburn hair over one shoulder. Bella didn't reply, just looked back and shrugged once more. 'Got any plans for the holidays?'

Bella shook her head. 'No. I'm just going to go home and spend some time with my family, I think.'

'Sounds nice.'

'I doubt it.' Bella sighed.

She couldn't decide what she wanted to do. A part of her desperately wanted to have another meeting with Tom Riddle and have him teach her more spells and they could develop their friendship a little more. But at the same time Barty's words were ringing in her head alongside everything Rabastan had to said to her… and that kiss. She couldn't make her mind up what she was supposed to do. And the other thing bothering her was the consequence of if she heeded their warnings – what would Tom do then? After the way he's managed to get Evan and AJ to drop out of school for him… what would he do if she told him she didn't want to work with him after all? After he'd put in so much effort?

The final day of term came and everyone was packed up to go. Bella was spending a last few minutes by the fire in the common room before she had to go. It was nice to just sit by herself for a while, but she was only waiting for Abby to finish saying goodbye to Matt, as he was staying at school over the holidays.

'Bella,' a calm voice addressed her from the shadows. She turned around to see Rabastan edging towards her. 'you thought about what I said?'

Bella smirked, she couldn't help it. 'I was more thinking about what you _did_.'

He flashed a small smile at her but she could tell something was wrong. He glanced around the room to check it was still empty before sitting down opposite Bella in an armchair.

'Look,' he started in a low voice. 'I need to tell you this because it would be grossly unfair if I didn't. Evan came back to me yesterday and told me something else, another message from Tom and I accepted it this time. I don't… I can't tell you why because it was part of the conditions… but know this, okay? I didn't _want_ to but he gave me no choice.' Bella was caught up watching him speak. He'd been so calm and dead set against Tom Riddle, and now he'd joined him? Whatever it was Tom had said to persuade him, it must have been powerful. 'You _need_ to get out now, okay? While you still can.'

Bella swallowed and met his gaze, his dark eyes showing nothing but concern. 'He started teaching me things, you know. I haven't actually told him I'll definitely join him… but it seems like I have, doesn't it?'

Rabastan nodded slowly and sighed, falling back into the chair and staring at the fire for a while. 'I guess.' He said finally. 'But try not to, alright? He thinks he's got you, he really does. Please don't prove him right.'

'Thanks for your concern.' Bella told him. 'But I can hold my own. I don't need people looking out for me. When everyone's telling me to keep away from him, and yet they've joined him, it's sending out somewhat of a mixed message, don't you think?' She answered back, gaining a little more force than she intended.

Rabastan looked slightly taken aback and took his time in replying.

'Do what you want, Bellatrix.' He said solemnly. 'But remember my actions as much as my words. I kissed you – it means I care about you. Keep that in mind.' And with that he stood up and left the common room without even looking back. Bella watched him leave and stared at the portrait hole for a while. She was still taking in what he'd said. _It means I care about you._ What was that supposed to mean?

'Bella!' She spun around and stood up on hearing her name and someone shattering her silent thoughts. 'You seen my brother?' Roddy asked her as he dragged his case out of the stairwell of the boy's dorms.

'I… yeah, he just left.' Bella told him honestly, though a little caught off guard at being asked about him. Roddy would go crazy if he found out she'd kissed his brother. Even though she had no relationship ties to him anymore, it would be one step over the line to kiss his brother. But still… she had to admit that overall, she liked Rabastan a lot more than his brother.

'Thanks.' He said with a real smile. 'You waiting for someone?'

'Yeah, Abby's just saying goodbye to Matt.'

'Oh.' He said awkwardly. 'I'll see you on the train?'

'Doubtfully.' Bella answered him. He looked as if he was about to reply but decided against it and strode past her and out of the common room. Bella let out a sigh of relief that he wasn't going to stick around and dropped into a seat on the sofa. Her head was a whirl of things she couldn't make out and doubted she ever would. Tom Riddle and all those powerful spells he could teach her… but Rabastan and Barty…

'Ready, Bella?' Abby's voiced echoed from somewhere behind her. It rang through the silence in Bella's head, like she was talking from behind a mist but wasn't visible. Bella shut her eyes for a moment and everything was clear again.

'Yeah.' She forced a smile and grabbed her case off the floor. Abby gave her a breezy smile and together they left the common room. They started casually discussing what they were going to do over the holidays, the plans Abby has to go away from Christmas and the present she was going to send to Matt, when she abruptly stopped speaking. Bella followed her gaze through the archway to the Entrance Hall. James Potter, hanging around, evidently waiting.

Bella rolled her eyes. She'd intended on evading him for much longer than this, she wanted to really drag out his apology but it seemed like this would have to do.

'Is he waiting for you?' Abby asked cautiously, peering through the archway like if he saw her she'd be turned to stone.

Bella sighed and dropped her case onto the stone floor. The noise evidently reached James as he spun around, caught off guard. Apparently he'd been waiting a while.

'I won't be long.' Bella told Abby in a steely tone, not once taking her cold eyes off James Potter. Abby swallowed and nodded, not really sure what to think of Bella's reaction.

Bella stormed up to James, her hair flying back behind her even with the lack of wind around.

'What?' She spat, stopping right in front of him.

James folded his arms and raised an eyebrow, clearly not intimidated by her. 'I wanted to talk to you.'

'Go on then.'

'Not here.'

James stormed off ahead of her and down another corridor, not even taking a second glance to make sure she was following him. Bella glanced back at Abby, who gave her a small nod, before she took off after James. He led her down a small, dimly lit corridor with no classrooms or doors on either side.

'James, where does this lead?' She called after him, more curiosity than nervousness but she still wanted to know.

'The boat house.' His voice echoed off the walls and Bella started to hear the sound of water sloshing to and fro.

'Why are we going there?' She asked, speeding up to a light jog to try and keep up with him. He didn't reply this time, just continued pacing a way ahead of her. Bella didn't try to ask again, she knew he'd heard her. They got to the deserted boat house, the light of the water rippling across the walls and one lonely boat bobbing on its own. She didn't speak, she just kept her distance from James and waited for him to say something.

'Bellatrix,' he started with a heavy sigh. It almost hurt her to hear him call her that instead of Bella. Almost. 'I need to apologise to you.' She waited for something else to be said but it wasn't forthcoming.

'Well, that was short and not so sweet.' She said, starting to move back towards the door to the corridor. James grabbed her wrist, maybe a little violently. She spun around and met with the gaze of his impossibly blue eyes behind those round glasses, his messy hair falling around them. As he looked at her, he knew he'd done wrong. He'd hurt her in a way he'd never thought he'd be capable of. When he started this endeavour it was because she was something he knew he couldn't have. _Shouldn't_ have. She was off limits but that's exactly why he started it. He thought she'd be stronger, yes, but he didn't think he'd let himself go as far as he did. Want got the better of him, his desires for more and more took over his moral compass. He should have known that for someone like Bella, giving her the hope of having a normal, happy life with someone she loves, would have been the worst way of hurting her.

'I'm sorry.' He said in a whisper. 'I know what I did to you was wrong.'

'Yes. It was.'

'And I know I gave you… mixed signals.'

'You did.'

He finally let go of her wrist and took a step back, removing temptation from right in front of him. 'There's nothing I want more than you to forgive me, Bella.' He said quietly, glancing out across the water, a glassy look appearing in his eyes. Bella's heart instantly melted a little.

'All you had to do was ask.' She answered in a surprisingly small voice. James broke a smile, as she couldn't help but do the same. 'And just so you know,' Bella continued while she still had the chance. 'I'm not jealous. Lily's a really lovely girl and you'd make a nice couple.'

'Thanks.' He said, his eyes dropping to the floor.

'I have to go, James.' Bella told him. 'But thank you.'

'Bella.' He started as she turned to leave. She didn't turn around but she did stop. 'I'll always love you, in some capacity.'

'Goodbye, James.' She said after a moment, opened the door and shut it behind her.


	23. Keeping It In The Family

Bella wondered what everyone else was doing right at that moment as she sat on the window seat in her bedroom staring out across the white blanket of snow. What was James Potter doing? Probably having a lovely time with his family, maybe gone to visit relatives, sending his owl to Lily with a Christmas present. And Barty? Probably working in Mr Borgin's shop again, trying to forget the nagging feeling that he should go and see his dad. Tom Riddle? Bella couldn't even imagine what he was doing right now. She couldn't even hazard a guess. Her sisters were outside enjoying one of the rare moments that they actually got along. She could see them throwing snowballs at each other, laughter echoing in through the glass. She was jealous on one level but she knew she'd only ruin the fun if she went down there. She'd only get into an argument with Annie about something petty and end up coming inside, soaking wet and freezing cold, before they all stormed off. She'd rather just watch them, knowing there were having fun without her.

She sighed and got up from the window. Sirius would probably be coming over soon. It was a Christmas tradition that he, Regulus and their mother come and spend a few days with them. Bella loathed it but it was something she couldn't change. She stared at her image in the mirror, her wild hair that she'd long stopped trying to control and her dark eyes that she'd given up all attempts of trying to make them seem friendly. Would she ever have what her sisters had? She bit back all the similar thoughts, reminding herself that whatever her broken relationship with Andromeda was, she'd always have Narcissa. Their relationship was great and that wasn't going to change.

She heard the door open downstairs and more voices fill the hallway below her. She crept out of her bedroom and peered over the railings of the landing to see her cousins and her aunt arrive, and her sisters come back into the house. She sympathised with Sirius a little sometimes. He had the same relationship with his brother that Bella had with Andromeda, except he didn't have another sibling he got on with. Bella did. And she could recognise that it would benefit him to have that.

After a moment Narcissa appeared at his side, the ends of her hair damp from the snow and her cheeks flushed having come back indoors. Bella sighed as she realised Narcissa had seen her and smiled, expecting her to go downstairs. She obliged and slowly made her way down the stairs to join her family.

Dinner was awful. It consisted mainly of Aunt Walburga bitching about Sirius and his friends and all the things they did that she disagreed with so much. After that awkward dinner and death glares during dessert, Bella finally thought she had the chance to be alone and start reading a Dark Arts book she'd been meaning to start. However, when she shut her bedroom door behind her, a knock echoed through the room. She sighed and turned around, knowing full well who was behind the door. Who would follow her all the way up the stairs and say nothing? Only to knock on the door straight after she'd closed it, rather than follow her inside?

Bella whipped the door open, throwing a draught through the doorway. 'What do you want, Sirius?' She snapped at her cousin.

He smirked at her and flicked his chocolate hair off his face. 'Come on, Bells, is that any way to treat _family_?'

'What do you want?' She repeated with a steely calmness.

'Can I come in, at least?'

Bella stared him out for a second but then stood aside and let her cousin into her bedroom, before shutting the door behind her. Sirius looked around curiously, taking in all the green drapes around Bella's bed and the plush cushions on the window seat.

'Fancy.' He muttered to himself, tugging subconsciously at the grey waistcoat he'd evidently been forced to wear.

Bella rolled her eyes. 'Nothing you don't have back home.' Sirius shrugged and dropped himself onto the window seat after surveying the room. 'Now, what do you want?' She asked for a third time.

'I know about you and James. I know what happened.' He said casually. Bella swallowed and tried not to let her panic show. Why should she panic, anyway? Who cares if Sirius knew?

'Okay.' She said flatly.

'_Okay_?' Sirius repeated with an exasperated tone. 'That's all you have to say? Bellatrix, I know what he did to you. I know what he promised and I know what happened! And that was not _okay_.' She turned away from him for a moment before placing herself down on her bed to look at him.

'Alright, so you know about it. So what? You want a trophy for being a great detective? You want a job as an Auror?'

He growled quietly from his throat and glared at the floor. He took a breath and stood up. 'You're family, Bellatrix, no matter how much you protest it. Both yourself and James behaved in a way that was despicable but on his part I'll admit it was worse.'

'Why are you telling me this?' Bella got up as well, the emotional side to her flaring up behind her eyes.

'Because I care.' Sirius said through gritted teeth. 'James got a fair beating from me about this. But I just wanted to let you know that… that it's alright. Okay? You can still count on me, no matter how much we hate each other.'

Bella blinked a few times and remained silent while she absorbed what he'd said. 'Thanks.' She replied quietly, taking a step back. 'You… um, you can count on me, too.'

Sirius smirked at the reaction he'd got from her. 'Thanks.' He answered with a nod. 'And I always knew you'd never actually hurt me, Bells, would you?'

'No. I wouldn't.'

Sirius laughed and she couldn't help but let herself giggle a bit, too. They'd never talked like this before. She wasn't quite sure what to make of it, but they both knew it wouldn't extend further than that conversation.

'That best not be a lie.' Sirius said with a grin. 'Because I don't wanna be fighting for you and have you blast me into oblivion.'

'And what would inspire me to do that?'

Sirius shrugged and sat down next to her on the bed. 'I dunno. Maybe I pissed you off again.'

'Yeah, maybe. Because we all know I kill people when they piss me off.'

'That's the spirit.' Sirius beamed at her and clasped her on the back, before getting up and heading for the door.

'Nice chat, Bells.'

'Likewise.'

And with that, he left. Bella stared at the door for a few moments after it shut. That conversation had caught her off guard. After everything she and Sirius had said to each other in the past, all the hateful comments and fights, and now he tells her that. She actually felt touched, her heart felt warm from it but she had no idea why. She'd always hated Sirius with all the hate she had but now? She couldn't hate someone who'd just told her that.

A gentle swooping sound broke her thoughts as she turned to her window. A black owl sat patiently on the window ledge, a package attached to its leg. She opened the window for it and it hopped inside, pushing its leg towards he so she could receive the package. The owl did not stay to wait for a reply. Bella shut the window after it and sat down on her window seat to open the package. It was a black book with the name 'Tom Marvolo Riddle' etched in gold on the front. Bella swallowed hard. She knew who this was from and this book looked highly personal. She carefully flicked through the pages but found that it was completely blank. The book came with a small note:

_Keep this safe for me_

_TMR_

Bella knew it must be something really important but she couldn't understand why he would choose her to keep this for him. He had plenty of people who he could have look after it… and surely it would be safer with himself. She didn't question it, though – she didn't have any way to question it – and she put it under her pillow until she could think of a better place to hide it.

She'd just about settled down to try and read the book she intended to read before Sirius's interruption. However, once more an owl appeared on the window ledge. She slammed the book down on her bed and allowed the second owl entry. This time it was a tawny owl with a friendly looking face. It held out its leg for her to take the package it had, then dropped a letter on the sofa that it had been carrying in its beak. This owl hung around. Bella sighed and opened the drawer below her wardrobe. She kept owl treats in there because any witch or wizard worth their salt always carries owl treats. She dropped a few of the treats at the owl's feet and it gratefully chirped as it nibbled at the treats. Bella shut the window, realising it may take the owl some time to get through the treats, and sat down next to it.

She opened the letter first – it was from Lily:

_Merry Christmas, Bellatrix! I don't mind if you didn't get me anything, you probably didn't expect me to get you anything, anyway. But you've been really good to me since we met, so thank you. Have a merry Christmas and a happy new year,_

_Lily._

Bella felt instantly guilty. Lily was right, she didn't expect her to have got her a present but she still felt guilty. She'd have to go out and get something and send it to her. She put down the letter and started to open the package. There was a little note tucked into the front cover of the book reading _Thought you might like this_. It was a copy of Quidditch Through the Ages. Bella sighed, Lily was a mudblood after all, she probably didn't know that almost everyone had a copy of this book. She turned the first page and her eyes widened. It wasn't just a copy of Quidditch Through the Ages – it was a _signed_ copy of Quidditch Through the Ages. She scanned the signatures on the page and soon realised it was signed by almost every member of the England Quidditch Team. Bella shut the book and realised that now she'd have to get Lily something really amazing. Who knows how she'd managed to get hold of that book but she managed it somehow.

The owl finished off its treats and scooted over to the window. Bella pushed it open and watched Lily's owl sail off into the night. She shut the window again but continued to watch the owl until it was no longer visible. That girl constantly surprised her with kindness. She was the anomaly. The mudblood Bella actually liked. The only one. The exception. How was she supposed to join Tom's cause against mudbloods when she'd met someone as special as Lily? Could she really run a crusade against the same person who helped her get through everything James put her through?

The door creaked open and Bella knew instantly it was her mother. She was the only person who didn't knock.

'Do you want some hot chocolate, Bella? Everyone's coming downstairs for a drink before bed.' She asked. Her eyes fell on the book, which had now fallen back to the signed pages. 'Who bought you that?'

Bella hastily shut the book and pushed it out of sight, like doing this would erase her mother's memory of it. 'A friend.' She said vaguely.

Her mother raised her eyebrows. 'A friend? If you say so, Bella.' She said with a knowing smirk. Bella played along, it was better her mother thought it was a gift from a boy than from a mudblood. She was happy to play that game. She followed her mother downstairs, accepting the offer of hot chocolate, and hoping Sirius wasn't there. Even after their chat earlier, she still didn't want to see him. It was a onetime thing, they now had to go back to hating each other and that was tiring.

Everyone was downstairs. Bella's parents and her aunt were sitting together talking closely about something while everyone else sat in the opposite corner of the room, drinking hot chocolate. Bella sighed and picked up an empty mug off the table, which instantly began filling itself with hot chocolate, then swirled whipped cream over the top. She joined her sisters and cousins without a word. Sirius and Andromeda were having their own little conversation and neither of them acknowledged Bella when she joined them.

'Hey, Bella.' Narcissa greeted her with a wide smile. There was a sparkling silver necklace around her neck that she was wearing with pride. 'Lucius sent it for me. Lovely, isn't it?'

'Mm. Very nice.' Bella told her, trying to make it look sincere. In reality she didn't really care for jewellery, and while the necklace looked expensive, it still looked tacky.

'Anyone send anything for you?' Narcissa asked. Bella wondered whether she was meant to tell her about the book or not. Quidditch Through the Ages, that is – she wouldn't dream of burdening Narcissa with the diary Tom Riddle sent her.

'No.' She said with a shrug. It was probably best not to let her ask questions about Lily, either, especially in front of their family. Narcissa tried to give her a sympathetic look, even though it didn't come across that way.

'You got anything?' She asked Regulus, who'd remained stonily silent after Bella's arrival.

'No.' He said simply, forcing a smile. Bella was instantly suspicious. Alarm bells went off at that comment, he was lying in the same way that she was. Why would Regulus hide a gift? He wasn't working with Tom Riddle, so why… Or was he? There was just something in the back of her mind that _needed_ to know. She needed to know if Tom trusted him more than her, like she could weigh what he was sent against the diary and see if it was more important. She had no idea why she suddenly wanted to win approval from Tom but now she knew he'd sent something to her cousin, it became more of a competition.

Bella shrugged and smiled back at him, trying not to alert him to her knowledge of his lie. She started to plan a way to find out about his gift in her head. She knew which room he was staying in at their house but what she didn't know was where he'd keep something like that. She didn't intend to keep that diary under her pillow forever but she was well aware that hiding something personal under your pillow was a distinctly female thing to do and she doubted that Regulus would have opted for the same tactic. There was one possibility, one idea that she couldn't shake using. She was so desperate to find out! She'd do anything. But she pushed that idea to the back of her mind, it was an absolute last resort. She'd have a good root through Regulus' room before she deployed that strategy.

'Anyway,' she sighed, forcing a yawn. 'I'm tired, I'll just go to bed now, I think.'

Narcissa, poor thing, absorbed everything and simply smiled at her sister and wished her goodnight. Regulus, however, seemed suspicious.

'It's not that late, Bella. You haven't even finished your drink.'

Bella looked at her cup and the remaining hot chocolate drained out of the cup. 'Yes, I have.' She said with a smirk, before leaving without waiting for another protest from her cousin. She knew she didn't have long, especially after he'd tried to prevent her leaving. She shut the door slowly before kicking off her shoes and bolting up the stairs, trying to remain silent. She got to the third landing and pushed open the door of Regulus' room. She soon realised she had her work cut out. Everything was everywhere. Clothes, books, potions ingredients… just all over the place. No sign of order or regulation. It was a complete mess. How was she supposed to find something through this much mess? She opened a few drawers, all of which were empty, before hearing footsteps on the landing. She held her breath. She glanced around the room looking for an escape but seeing none. As the footsteps advanced towards the other side of the door she realised there was nothing else to do but duck under the bed and pin herself to the floor.

However, the person she saw open the door wasn't the person she was hiding from. It was Sirius.

'Bells, I know you're in here.' He said confidently, shutting the door behind him.

Bella sighed. 'Am I that obvious?' She replied without moving from her position. Sirius smirked and dropped to the floor to look at her.

'Sadly, yes.' He held his hand out to her to pull her out from under the bed. She raised her eyebrows before getting up without his help. 'What are you looking for?'

She didn't know what to say. This was the plan she'd tried to force herself not to think of. She could tell Sirius. He knew Regulus well enough to know where he'd hide something. Bella took one look in her cousin's eyes and knew that on some level he already knew.

'I need to see it, Sirius. You know what I'm talking about.'

Sirius nodded gravely. 'I know about it, I'm not sure where he keeps it.' He paused for a moment to look around the room before confusion slipped onto his face. 'How do you know about it?' This was the point she hadn't prepared for. Whether to lie to her cousin and pretend she wanted to stop Regulus getting involved, which wasn't a complete lie but her motivation wasn't right. Or, whether to be truthful and tell him that she herself was already a part of the same group.

'He's involved with something he shouldn't be, Sirius. I need whatever he got sent.' That was vague enough, she decided. It seemed good enough for Sirius, who simply nodded with a hard expression.

'He hides things in mess.' Sirius informed her. 'This may look like chaos but he knows where everything is. He does this so I can't knick things from him.'

'Does it work?'

'Sometimes.' He shrugged. 'But he likes to keep important things on him. Close to him. So it all depends what he was sent, if it's something he can put in pockets or put on a chain, he will. If it's something bigger…' Sirius thought aloud, pacing through the mess on the floor, making a conscious effort not to move anything from its place. He opened the wardrobe and pulled out a black broomstick box. He placed it on the bed and tried to unlock it but quickly retracted his hand in shock.

'For God's sake, Reg.' Sirius mumbled.

'What? Is it cursed?'

Sirius smirked, still clutching his hand. 'Jinxed. Stinging jinx.' Bella drew her wand and climbed across the bed to the broomstick box. She pointed her wand at it and said the counter jinx. Sirius gave her a look before opening the box again. Bella couldn't help but smile at him as she put her wand back. They both peered inside the box, which did contain a broomstick but other things as well.

'Any idea what we're looking for?' Sirius asked her, as they were greeted with papers and pens and other assorted junk.

'Not a clue.' Bella said with a heavy sigh. She couldn't even judge it against what she'd been sent because the only thing she knew it would be was personal. It was be personal to Tom. But that could be anything.

After what seemed like hours, but couldn't possibly have been, and finding everything from letters from girls to books about banned spells, they turned up nothing of interest. Sirius shut the box, Bella replaced the jinx and they put the box back.

They left Regulus' room and adjourned to Sirius' instead. Bella dropped herself onto her cousins bed in frustration, while Sirius paced the length of the room. 'He's got to be keeping it somewhere… He could have it on him… Unless…'

'Kreacher.' Sirius gasped, as Bella snapped upright to look at him.

'Kreacher?' She repeated.

'Kreacher. He'll have given it to Kreacher. It wouldn't be the first time. He's given things to Kreacher to keep before… He could have done it again. That is, of course, if he doesn't have it in his pocket, or something.'

This kept Bella up through most of the night. He might have it with him. That narrowed down what she was looking for. Something he could keep in his pocket. That would be easy to tell if he had something in his pocket or not. It was easier pocket sized or something he could wear. A necklace, bracelet… it could be anything. It could even be an item of clothing. She'd have to take in everything that he was wearing tomorrow, everything about him, to work out what Tom had sent him.


End file.
